The Black Queen
by thebladeofchaos
Summary: What defines a life? Is it what each person has? the adventures they have, the changes they make on the world? or is it the people they touch, they inspire, they protect? Time is against us, and to protect our future, we need to learn from the past. For the past may hold our best weapon to stand against the coming storm, the light against the coming darkness.
1. Prologue

I seem to run on impulse a lot...and I do mean a lot...as in too often. But still, this is a story I want to do, and it's not for the reasons you think. RWBY has a whole world given to us, and we've seen very little of it, that and the history of the world itself.

Though, before this begins, I have to note one major thing...this is subject to the setting that we have as of the 27th of May, 2014. things may change as RWBY begins it's second season, that's something I can't control. However, that being said. LET'S ROCK!

_**Prologue: Legacy**_

_QUEEN HAS PAWNS_

These words seemed to have no meaning unto themselves, neatly aligned on the tablet in his hands. The live feed of the events of the dockyards still in his mind as he read the message from Qrow. Ozpin knew what he meant all too well, simply humming in acknowledgement to himself. No one else was there in the room, and as he sat at the desk, the night air ringing with the sounds of one of the many students at Beacon academy singing. It fitted too well with what had transpired lately. Too well indeed. He put the tablet on the table, grabbing his still warm but half drunk cup of coffee, taking a quick sip.

History had a habit of repeating...though the last time wasn't so kind. The players were much harder to identify, though the pieces were better ignored...except for one. He looked around the office, going from the sturdy oak door to the bookshelf, packed to the brim with books on every topic known to man, from Dust and it's various refinements, to weapons crafting, from Grimm and the methods of fighting them to maps, guides and tourist traps.

But there was one book that stood out, even at a distance. Where as the others were seemingly well used, devoid of dust, webbing and marks, one large tome looked like it had sat on the shelf for far too long. The dust on it piled up in small layers, covering up the title and the author. The spine was tattered, aged, weathered, having seen one too many winters in it's time. The leather itself was blighted, almost ruined, held together by various strings of leather and very determined spiders wanting to keep their home.

The Professor stood slowly from his desk, grabbing his trusty walking stick and pacing slowly over to the bookshelf, his shoes occasionally dragging as he lost his balance at times. Years of this should have taught him better, but at his age, curiosity sometimes overran his common sense, and as he pushed up his spectacles to make sure they didn't fall off his face, his brown eyes looked over the book once more.

"How long have I kept this here..." He asked himself, reaching up and grabbing it with his free hand, fragments of the leather breaking off as he held it, dust coating his hand, fragments of leather flying off. "Too long...too long without reading it at all..." He slowly paced back towards the desk, his feet echoing around the old stone walls. He took a seat once more, placing the tome on the desk, the dust flying up forcing him to wave a hand in front of his face. He waited until the cloud settled, picking up his dataslate once more and navigating the menus, going through his folders until he got to one marked in bold letters.

**Black Queen**

He opened the folder, the screen darkening, then popping up a window, asking for access code. Ozpin half smiled, remembering how long it had been since he had last accessed this most secret of files. Not even Glenda knew the contents of this folder. And given the fact that he had all night, and tournament practice being more then enough to distract all the teachers from his disappearance over the next few days, he was more then able to deal with a few all nighters going through the contents of the tome.

"User: Ozpin. Password: Black King" He spoke, the data slate then flashing up with a green screen, the words 'Access granted' flashing up along with it before vanishing, leaving him with the now open folder, looking over the contents. Maps of the world marked with movements of troops during the dark days of the Faunus War. Diagrams and Sketches of the grounds of Beacon academy during and after the war, and how it developed to what it was today.

The contents went on, further back in history, back into what no one else would regard as something any creature on the planet would have a secure knowledge of beyond legend, beyond myth. Humans loved their tales of Heroism, of courage and valour in Remnant. And as he opened the tome for the first time in only the dust itself knew how long. Mr Arc's Great Great Grandfather was reputed to have fought. Mr Arc was not a warrior himself, as much as he may have claimed it. Hopefully he'd learn. After all, legacy was an important thing.

And it was on this that he turned to the data slate once more, leaning it against a plant pot on his desk, opening a few files and pictures up and clipping them onto a column on the right of the screen, and when he closed the folder, opening up a program on the base screen, a flat green line with a red circle next to it taking a big part of the screen. He opened the book to the first page, looking over the yellowed page to try and find a title of some sort, or at least a guide of how long the book was. It looked like it was at least a thousand pages.

That was casual...he'd read more for his lessons. Pressing the red button on the screen, a time flipping out. _Time for another report._

"Ozpin, Black King, 9 28 14 4 26" He began, flipping the page once more, putting the cane to one side as he picked up a feather from the desk, placing it under the first word of the book.

"How do we define what a life is? Is it one person from birth to death? The adventures they have, the changes they make? Or is it defined by the people they touch in that same time frame? Many people would concur that it is the former. After all, we live our lives. Some would ague the latter. We live in a world where we must work together. Either standing together or falling apart.

"In the past, there was a legend, a myth. One who bridged the gap between so many divides. One who led the fight to save the world from the Darkness that threatened to Envelop it in ages long forgotten. We often choose to forget them not realising the potential they have upon this world, this remnant of land that we hold.

"However, when we forget legends, we make stories. When we forget the deeds of the past, we remember them in the fairy tales that we tell our children. In my youth I was told stories of the Green knight who saved us from the darkness, leading his legion to push it back once and for all. Whilst this is partially true, this is a mix of two tales.

"The first that bears no need to be heard once more is the Warrior of Dust, the one who mastered Dust beyond what measures we have today. The other is a lot more recent: the legacy of Saint Silven, the one that we all forget. This story began before the days of the Faunus Rights war of five generations past. But it's effects are still felt today, whether we admit they do or not..."

He lowered his head once more, looking down at the book, running the feather along the faded ink as he started reading...

_Begin records_

The rain pelted down upon the scarred landscape, thunder ringing out upon the grassy plains, like a gunshot ringing out from the heavens. The ground was almost flooded, water forming large puddles on the surface of the soil, what grass there was almost drowned by the rain, each drop echoing around as the pitter and patter of the rain resounded around.

These were only broken by the footsteps and pants of a dark robed figure, dashing with all due haste away, the occasional clinking of metal coming from her, her feet and hands covered by the robe. The figure sounded feminine, at the very least that was given from how she sounded. The thunder clashed around her, occasionally stumbling as she lost her footing in the sodden mud.

She looked back once, seeing the large, black, Grimm coming at her, known as an Ursa Major. It was chasing after her with purpose, with speed, it's claws digging into the earth, slowly but surely catching up with her, barely making a sound as it chased after her. The figure turned away from it, focusing on where she was going, seeing the tree line in the distance. If only she could make it to the trees, she'd be safe. Ursa''s don't go too far from their hunting grounds.

The beast roared, slamming into her, shoulder first. The woman crying out as she fell over onto her chest, mud splashing up around her, the Ursa falling over forward, not anticipating the slip of the soil. Her hood fell back, revealing a blond haired young woman, her hair short, but dirtied by mud and blood. She groaned as she started to pick herself up, moving a hand over her head, trying to recover from the impact.

The beast turned back upon her, the thunder crashing down once more as they exchanged looked once more, the Ursa not taking much longer then that to charge her once more. The woman gasped, backing up as quickly as she could, trying to extend her life by however long she could. The beast reared up a swipe with it's sharp claws, the woman falling over onto her backside, covering her face with her arms, crying out in fear.

**Splishsplashsplishsplash** BLING!

Thunder crashed down once more, the woman still panting as she tried to work out if she were still alive or dead, or dying. She opened her eyes slowly, seeing her dirtied arms first, then moving them apart to look at the beast, seeing something she didn't expect to see at all.

Another woman was standing between her and the beast, standing at around half it's size when fully stood, sword and shield raised to block the blow, feet digging into the ground as best as she could muster, grunting as she held the arm back. Her green hair stood out as the first thing she saw of her head, but her red eyes were the second. Her face bore a small scar on the right side of her beautiful face. She had silver armour coating her body, mark with scratches and dents from numerous fights. Her sword had a silver blade, the handle was gold with a blue outline, the centre piece of the hilt being the white cross. Her shield, however, looked strange. The sections that normally attached it to the arm were missing, with one band around her forearm and a revolver pistol attached to the front.

The woman on the ground looked dumbstruck as she looked up at her saviour, frozen to the spot. The green haired warrior gritted her teeth, forcing back the claw slightly, then throwing a kick a the creature's chest, forcing it back slightly. She got her bearings once more, taking a defensive stance in front of the other one.

"Kaine" The green haired woman spoke, keeping calm despite the mass amount of rain soaking her, and the massive beast before her. "Go...I'll take this down"

"B-But Silven-" Kaine started, reaching forward before Silven reinforced her stance, getting ready, her steel shield almost shining despite the damage it appeared to have taken.

"Go!" The beast charged them once more, Silven raising her shield up to block the claw, the pair colliding with a resounding clash, the woman almost sinking further into the mud. "GO!" Kaine reluctantly nodded, running past the pair to the tree line, Silven still gritting her teeth as she held her ground against the beast.

"What I wouldn't give for a Gunnir right now" She admitted, pushing the claws back once more before jumping back, the beast throwing a second swing at her.

She rolled under the claw, running straight at it and swinging, the blade colliding with the beast's hide, but failing to break through it. It cried out still, feeling the steel biting into it, trying it's best to do a counter swing, the warrior rolling backwards under the swing. The beast dashed back, starting to circle the warrior, Silven pacing as well to circle back, moving her thumb to pull back the hammer on the revolver.

"Please let these things work" She said to herself, looking at the revolver, seeing the white bullets contained within. The beast saw her looking away, charging straight at her at this point. She looked back up, thunder ringing out as the creature swung at her, claws slicing through her armour, cutting into her as the paw itself threw her to one side. She flew along the ground, slamming into the sodden dirt multiple times as she did so. When she eventually stopped, she was face down, her sword right next to her, blade embedded into the ground right next to her head, shield still stuck to her arm.

She coughed, shaking her head and pushing herself up, grabbing the handle of her blade and looking at the beast, wiping her mouth. She stood up slowly, putting a hand to her chest, coughing once more. "That's going to sting" She spoke, shaking her head, water flying everywhere around her. "Come on, focus..." She spun the chamber of the revolver, lining up the bullets as the creature charged once more.

She swung her gun forward, firing a round at it's leg, ice forming around the foot where the bullet hit. She quickly pulled the hammer back with her thumb, firing off a second shot and freezing it's other leg, the beast stopping, save for sliding along the ground. She emptied the rest of the chamber at it's head, ice quickly forming around it. The creature thrashed and twisted, trying to free itself from it's icy bonds, Silven calmly walking forward.

She eventually got within reach of the beast, holding her sword up, swinging with all her might at the neck, coated in ice. She cleanly cut through the coating and it's hide, it's head falling to the ground, the body crashing down, blood flowing onto the ground in small spurts, some of it spilling onto her steel boots. Thunder crashed down once more, the warrior putting her sword away slowly into it's black sheath, taking a breath.

"Damn things" She spoke, turning away and walking, the shield folding away, forming an outer guard for the revolver as she holstered it. "Least I can tell them the Dust ammo works..."

_Many histories describe Miss Silven as a woman of unimaginable beauty, intelligence and skill, but as we all know, history has a habit of embellishing details of notable figures in history. Where as with more recent histories, we can know the details about such a person due to how our technology has developed, we rely upon accounts and paintings to ascertain what they were truly like. There are no truly accurate accounts of who Silven was, but indeed, we know of what she did._


	2. Chapter 1

So, I might as well admit it here, I like doing around 5 or so pages a chapter. they're short, granted, but I fear that if I go longer, it's going to reduce the quality. and I'd rather do a short and sweet rather then long and drawn out in feeling. That and I'm trying to build a world within a world. Not every day you get someone trying to do that in Fanfiction. Gotta build everything up and...well, that's new for me on here.

...wow, 6 years and something new. But yeah, there is stuff your not going to be able to understand in this, and I hesitate to 'pause the recording' so that Ozpin can explain. but anyway, MOVING ON!

* * *

_A question often comes around the academy that I find staff unable to answer_

_What was Vale like before the kingdom formed?_

_People only know the safety we have enjoyed today, and for centuries what we have held._

_People remember the battle, and forget the darkness._

The rain still hammered it down as Silven made her way through the old, twisting forest, fighting her way through the vines, the fauna and flora, occasionally drawing her sword and slashing at the vegetation in her way. She knew where she was heading, but it didn't stop her regretting it. And as she took another rain soaked swing to clear a path, her blade became embedded in the thick bark, the woman shaking her head, scowling at the tree as if it would let the sword go.

"For crying out loud" She cried, yanking at the sword, straining, placing a foot on the stump and pulling with all of her might. "Come on, come on! This damn thing is going to-" She didn't finish the next sentence as she lost her grip on the sword, falling flat on her back with a loud splash covering up her foul language.

"It's always woods" She complained, standing up slowly, brushing off what mud she could. "Why can it never be a city or even a mountain, somewhere AWAY from trees?"

"Because then-" **Click. **Silven more then knew what it was. Judging on how it felt against her neck it was a Gunnir. "We wouldn't be able to do things like this" Silven looked to one side, seeing the black coated gun behind her, the boxy barrel missing it normal bayonet. "What's a green-horn like yourself doing in these parts?"

"What's it to you, Technopath?" She responded bluntly, giving the owner a distainful look. "Of course..." she moved her hand, grabbing her revolver slowly, making sure her captor couldn't see her doing so. "...the spider must be careful of just what fly it catches"

She moved quickly, swinging her free arm to slam at the weapon against her, firing a round at the wood, freezing it quickly and slamming the rear of her boot into it, smashing the ice with the steel and spinning around. Her blade collided with the end of the boxy rifle, a resounding clash of steel on steel ringing out, water flying off of the pair as Silven adjusted her shield arm, pointing the revolver at her opponent. Sadly, she was in a perfect position for the Gunnir to blast her away.

She took a few seconds to breath, getting a good look at her foe. And quickly following it up with a smile.

"Kaine" She pulled the sword back away from the other woman, shaking her head. The blond haired woman put the stocky rifle over a shoulder, resting it on the back of her neck, then giving her opposite a nod. She was still wearing the cloak, still hiding the clothes underneath in the rain.

"Silvy, I thought you were taught not to swing at the plants" Kaine replied, walking up to the shattered segment and rubbing it, sighing. "Sorry about the big bad Silvy, Tree" Silven put her sword away at this point, shaking her head.

"Damn it Kaine, you scared me half to death" She put the revolver away once more, putting her hand on her side. "And didn't I just save your ass from an Ursa?" Kaine did a small pivot before leaning forwards towards Silven, getting a closer look at the green haired woman, almost uncomfortably so. "Erm..."

"Sieggy was looking for you. Said you were late getting to the meet up" Kaine put the rifle behind her back, letting the huge weapon hang from it's leather strap, the weapon almost towering above her in size. She started walking away, leaving Silven dumbfounded for a few seconds. "Come on Silvy, We're already late for the hunt"

She shook her head as Kaine broke out into a run as she started headed back, leaving Silven in the soggy dust behind her. Silven simply sighed, holding her hands up and shaking her head. _I'll never understand that girl _She thought, breaking out into a run after the riflewoman, leaving this thought behind as she did.

It took a while running through the forest and the rain, Kaine almost dancing between branches and bushes, Silven having to duck and dive to avoid the swing back of several of these, getting hit by one and knocked to the ground. It didn't take too long from then to get out of the woods, getting to the other side, to safety. Kaine spun around, stepping backwards and motioning for Silven to speed up, excited. If she could hear properly, the warrior could almost swear the gunner was enjoying this, almost as if she wanted to do this. If only she knew...if only.

The camp site or, as Silven liked to call it, the Vale of the Forgotten, was a simple place. Everyone there was a warrior of some regard, from simple warriors to archers of varying arts to 'Technopaths', those who practised the 'dark arts' of technology and development. And then there were the few Faunus still around that weren't driven away by the other inhabitants, hanging on with the hope of recognition, of reward, of equality.

The amount of tents that were set up was ridiculous, and each of varying sizes and designs. The only common things shared between them was the white covering, the walk in entry and the flag waving proudly from the top of the flag pole even in the current foul weather. The design of the shield and the cross against one another. However they heck they had earned that she would never understand, but still...something to be proud of. To be part of something bigger then just herself.

Walking through the middle of the camp, trying to keep up with a now slower, yet not slow, Kaine wasn't the easiest thing in the world. Silven past blacksmiths, cooks, warriors of all breeds, sizes, genders and races, even the camp 'legends' as people came to call them. Warriors dressed from head to toe as the Warrior of Dust. The pair did a small bow as 5 of them passed, each one meant to be skilful enough to take down 5 Nevermores alone. Each one was dressed in full plate mail, with an ocean blue Great sword, each tall and strong enough to use it one handed, Helmets covering their heads, and a silver outline around it. No one knew why the Warrior of Dust had dressed like this in his time, all they knew was it was his way. It was definitely eye catching, seeing someone holding a massive blue Sword like that with little to no effort.

_What I wouldn't give...to have strength like that. _She thought, letting them pass by as a sign of respect. Kaine had already skipped by entirely, eager to get into the centre tent. She stood outside, waving her arms frantically to try and get Silven to speed up, either wanting to get out of the shower or wanting to get in for business. The warrior dashed after her, sighing as she got to the entry, pushing the flap over her as the pair walked in.

"...You see what I mean, right, Siegfried? We move in on them here, we're leaving ourselves exposed to them"

"Do I care? We're supposed to trust them, not expect them to cut us down as soon as we expose our backs to them"

"You know as well as I do why they are here"

"For the same reason as I know why the majority of the people here enlisted in the first damn place. I learn more then you'll ever think"

The girls looked at the pair of arguing men, seeing them both looking over a map of the region, marked with arrows and names here and there. One of the men was a tall greying man, wearing heavy set leather with the odd plate here and there, marked with the emblem of the crossed swords in front of a sun, a single sword attached to his belt with a pair of black boots. The other was a shorter young man with predominantly black hair, featuring the odd section of white. Two swords were tied to the left side of his belt, with a longbow over his shoulder. He had a few sections of plate on, like the knees, the left shoulder, to name but two sections. One arm had more armour then the other, one free of armour entirely, and the other coated in armour right up to the hands, with the fingers uncovered. The taller of the two turned around, looking at the two walking in with his silver eyes.

"We shall speak on this later, Dark. For now, I have a meeting" He spoke, patting the shoulder of the shorter swordsman, 'Dark' turning around to the pair, seeing the women at the door, grunting and walking towards them, his red piercing eyes barely looking over the pair before he barged between them, slamming his shoulder into the smaller of the pair, Silven resisting an urge to spin around and slam a fist into his back for doing such to Kaine. The man left over shook his head, putting his hand to his forehead.

"Will he ever learn..." He asked himself, then looking back at the pair who had just entered, getting a salute from them. "Kaine, Silven, You're both late"

"Ran into issues, Sir Siegfried" Silven replied, looking at the knight. "Bigger nest then we had anticipated, and Kaine here ran into issues with an Ursa Major on the way back" Kaine stopped her salute, shrinking.

"Silvy had to save me from an Ursy" She spoke, putting her hands together and twiddling her thumbs nervously. "And I lost my Gunnir" Siegfried sighed, putting a hand onto his side.

"How did you lose something that big and dear to you?"

"That Nevermore you wanted me to fight...my shooting spot wasn't as good as I thought, and it dodged most of my shots" She hit the top of her own head with her hand, sighing. "And as I began falling back it...pinned the Gunnir into the ground" At this point, Silven had to give her a concerned look.

"This isn't like you, Kaine. You're more on the ball then this..." Siegfried put a hand on her shoulder, Kaine seeming to just...relax, taking a breath.

"I know, I know, Kaine is sorry" Silven rolled her eyes, Kaine pulling the 3rd person routine was always her attempt at getting out of trouble.

"Go talk to Lazarus, He'll be able to fine tune this one to your tastes. I need to speak with Silven alone for a time"

Kaine was more then happy to leave, giving him a quick salute and dashing out, her Gunnir falling off of her shoulder as she did so, clattering to the ground, the pair within staring for a time until an arm appeared, scrambling around to try and find the weapon, eventually dragging it back out. Silven looked around the tent at this point, getting a good view of what Siegfried had in his tent.

To the left of the entry was a bedroll, with several armour and weapon racks filled with weapons of varying origins and designs. There was a wooden chest, presumably filled with treasures and relics from the fights with Grimm over the years. To the right were maps, scrolls, books, everything a leader would need to read, to plan and to deal with. At the back was a map of the area now known as Haven, marked with nests, settlements, vital areas of the campaign and plans. It also had a note attached to the frame, in a handwriting Silven couldn't read at the distance she was at. A couple of stools were around, set around a table Siegfried was unfolding.

"Didn't take you as a nosy one, Eradora" Siegfried spoke, breaking the silence between the pair only held outside of rain on the tent itself. She was broken out of her almost trance, looking at Siegfried again as he sat down. "Sit. I need to get you informed of the plan" She nodded, stepping forward, crossing the ground and taking a seat, sitting up straight. The warrior with her couldn't help but chuckle. "Relax, I'm not about to rip your head off like the Grimm"

"Well, it's not every day you find yourself in the presence of a war hero" She replied, brushing her hair off her shoulder. "Everyone knows your name and talents. To even meet you is considered an honour in and of itself" It was at this point that Siegfried bellowed out a laugh that almost made the girl want to cover her ears up to try and save damaging her hearing, it was long, loud, proud. For his age, he had one heck of a laugh behind him. It didn't take him long to calm down, wiping an imaginary tear from his eye.

"I'm such a high and mighty legend huh? God damn I haven't heard such a humorous thing in my life" He admitted, slapping his knee. "If you keep this up we'll have to find a way to make you a jester" Silven sighed, shaking her head.

"Sir Siegfried..."

"Relax...relax" He calmed down, shaking his head slightly, coughing once. "Sorry...I just don't feel like this...hero you make me out to be, Eradora"

"If I hear that name one more time-"

"I know, I know, Silven" He shook his head, sighing. "Brighten up girl, not my fault it's your last name"

"Where's that leave Kaine?"

"She's a special case..."

"Can we get to work now?" _I'm tired of hearing this damn story all the time_

"Right. Right...I want you to form a hunting party with Dark, Kaine and Falcon"

"'Dark'? Falcon?"

"I'll introduce you to them later. Falcon's a bright one, and Dark's a good sword. Kaine may be a little obscure, you know, being your little sister and all" She shook her head at this, sighing loudly.

"Sir, she's not my sister...we're just friends" Siegfried chuckled again, Silven looking away and instantly feeling her face heat up.

"Way you two are with one another...Heavens, I would have you two pegged as more then that" She turned quickly back to him, swearing that steam was coming out of her ears.

"I-It's not like that. I-I Just want to keep her safe" He chuckled again, shaking his head. "Sir Siegfried..."

"I get it, I get it...jeez, have a sense of humour" He sighed, grabbing a knife from his boot and stabbing it into the map. _He's going to regret that _"We found a nest of Ursa at the cove. We're hoping you'll go and clear it out so that we can set up a port there. Once that's done, we'll work on clearing out what's left on our rear guard before heading towards the forgotten forest"

"Sounds easy enough"

"Reports have stated a Death Stalker in the area...that's where the trouble comes in" Siegfried pointed to the section on the map where he wanted her to go. From the look of the map, a nice enough place on the coast, but if the massive marking noting 'Large Ursa Horde' said anything, it was a massive warning. "I myself will be dealing with a Nevermore nest on the mountain with the Dustalikes" Silven nodded, standing up and doing a salute once more.

"Didn't think you didn't like the Legends, Sir"

"I'll respect any man or woman who pulls their weight. However, the guys have a habit of asking above their station. Hell, one of them tried to take my role. If I didn't beat him down with his own sword he'd have been de Castielan's commander right about now" He crossed his arms once more, standing up and pacing around the room. "Arrogant swine...last time I let them cover my back in a brawl" He shook his head, moving a hand and pointing straight at Silven. "Regardless, we're miles off topic. Get to the armoury, get yourself equipped for combat. If what I've heard is right, You've got a present to collect. The others are meeting you there as well. Now get your backside moving"

Silven shook her head, shrugging as she stood up, walking past the knight with a quick salute, lifting up the flap of the tent. The rain had finally stopped. That was a good sign.

And she was feeling lucky...

_History is a powerful thing. It can be the most efficient teacher, the expert scholar and the master tactician._

_But it can also misguide us, giving us glimpses of people that aren't true, or are just plain false._

_Whilst the future will never be as clean and perfect as people might like it to be, it is better to look forwards towards the dawn then to languish in the dark._

_For Lessons are learnt...and forgotten as much as history changes it's defined era._


	3. Chapter 2

_Fate always has a funny way of positioning pieces, placing the major players._

_It's never where you expect them to be, and never who you think it should be._

_When History will always embellish details about those who will do glorious deeds later on, we have to look at other sources to find the truth._

_Saint Silven is the biggest example of this. She is regarded as the most heroic, generous and kind woman you'd meet in the age._

_And yet...she was a mercenary...a cold-blooded, money-driven sell sword. History would cry at that._

There were times when she was thankful for soaked mud ground. Made it easier to hear people walking, less surprises when entering the tents, as waterproof as they claimed to be. And as Silven opened the flap, stepping inside, for the first time in many a year, she was surprised, hearing the sounds of gunfire, swords hitting steel and leather, explosions and hammers. Who ever had the smart idea of putting the training areas together along side the development sections was not the wisest person around. But then, with whatever wisdom, it had worked out, given that it enabled a lot of the technopaths to get their weapons developed and tested quickly, an asset that had aided them many a time in the field. The warrior was thankful that it was near enough empty, only three other people within the tent right now.

The tent itself was...unique amongst the campsite. Whilst it had the standard tent flap entry and was relatively large compared to the rest, the opposite end was wide open, the entire side of the tent flipped open, giving a massive firing range for the archers, the snipers and the gunners. Kaine was knelt down in front of one of the ranges, her Gunnir pressed against her shoulder as she aimed down the range, pulling the trigger, the gun blasting out a shot, smoke flying out of the end, almost enveloping the end of the bulky, cumbersome barrel. She took her hand off the trigger to grab the handle of the bolt, lifting it up and pulling it back, looking like it took a lot of effort to do so.

To the left were a series of stands, fitted with armour made for humanoid bodies and by humanoid hands, rusted, battered and bruised. For all Silven could think of, she couldn't find an answer as to why this was the case. They were fighting the Grimm, not humans. This wasn't the War any more, training had to adapt to show this. There was one person here, the man from before, Dark or something like that. Silven stood for a bit to look at him, watching his training routines. He swung his blades at the target erratically, swinging one blade from one side then following it up with an attack on the other. At times he threw a kick out, even stabbing it if it worked it's way into the routine. He threw the right handed blade up in the air, spinning around, both hands on the other sword and slamming it into the dummy, cutting clean through it, the sword in the air coming down in time to impale it in the skull.

She turned away, looking to the other side, past Kaine at the work benches, seeing a blue haired woman, her hair tied up in a pony-tail, going from the crown of her head down her back, hammering away at a sword, wearing thick leather overalls, complete with hood. She almost seemed to be all too focused on it, though it didn't take many hammer strokes for her to finish, putting it to one side and grabbing a circular scraper, putting it down the point of the sword and pushing it in and out. A very confusing thing considering what it was.

"SILVY!"

Suddenly becoming enveloped in the arms of the younger woman, her vision going, covered by a yellow shroud, Silven couldn't help but groan as she almost swore her ribs were broken by the bear hug of Kaine, the pair tumbling to the ground, the swordswoman under the technopath. It was a very...uncomfortable position, Kaine's leather and Silven's steel not protecting the swordswoman from the embarrassment of how Kaine had positioned the pair. Unable to voice a complaint, Kaine only made it worse when she shifted to the right slightly, placing her knee on the ground.

"OH SILVY! I thought Siegfried was going to fire you or get rid of you in some regard" She spoke, still hugging her tightly. "And then I'd be alone with these mean old men and-" Finally coming up for air, Silven took a deep breath, grabbing Kaine's shoulders.

"Kaine...can't...breath" She gasped.

"Oh" Kaine let her go, the warrior gasping as she lent back. "Sorry...didn't mean to-"

"It's...all right...Kaine..." She patted her chest, trying to re-set her ribs...or at least in her mind do that. "Jeez...you're getting stronger" Kaine gave her a proud smile, closing her eyes and tilting her head.

"I've been practising, Silvy. Got to do so in order to handle my Gunnir" She stood up, brushing her knees down before offering a hand to the fallen warrior, lifting her back up to her feet. "Got to make you and Siegfried proud of me"

"You make me proud by merely fighting, Kaine..." She placed her hand on the younger girl's head, rubbing it, getting an almost purr from her. If not for personally knowing her, She's almost swear her friend was a faunus. She looked as though she was about to cry upon Silven retracting her hand, getting back into her normal mode. "Go get your combat gear together. We've got a job to do" Kaine nodded, almost seeming to grin and spin on the spot, heading over to a private corner of the room, pulling down a section of the tent, providing a sort of curtain to separate her, at least in sight from the rest of the tent. _That girl...sometimes I wonder..._

"Take it you guys are friendly...least from that display" Silven shook her head, turning to the new guy, looking upon the figure of Dark, swords put away, arms crossed. "Just do us all a favour and keep those displays in private, could you? I don't want to look upon two women having sex with one another" Silven blushed, looking away from the swordsman.

"It's not like that..." She started, scratching her head. "We're-"

"I don't really care. You two do what the hell you want. Just keep it away from me" He rubbed under his nose with a fingerless gauntlet, shaking his head at the same time. "However...with that said, Siegfried explained that I am in your team...guess I've gotta put up with it" He lowered his guard for a second, extending a hand for her. "Dark Swiftblade, ex-member of the Silmerian Legion" She raised an eyebrow at this, looking at him cynically, the flush gone from her face.

"What's a desert dweller doing here in the forests?" He took his hand back, looking away, pausing for a spell before turning away from her, walking away.

"I have a debt to repay..." He explained, though not enough for Silven to consider it an answer. "But regardless, you don't need to know. Not going to affect you in any way is it?"

"Considering the last time I heard that was from a Schnee, and then I found myself cornering a faunus slave rebellion" She replied, shaking her head. "Though, to give you credit, I can trust a sword more then I can trust an aristocrat"

"Considering I hear your supposed to be the daughter of a noble-"

"If that were the case I wouldn't be out here. If my father or indeed my mother were any form of wealthy, I would be back home playing happy daughter to them now wouldn't I?" The fact that Dark didn't answer came as a sign for her. Whatever the case...it'd give him an idea of what she was like. She stepped forward, holding her arm up defiantly."I'm here to do a job to get paid, not play some crappy game" Dark turned his head to look at her, arms crossed once more, barely even paying her attention.

"I'm not playing either, Eradora..." He spoke, looking back to the training dummies. "Just grab me when we're off. I'd rather spend my time doing something constructive rather then playing happy families" She raised an eyebrow at this point, cracking her knuckle as he took a few more steps. "Oh, and don't try and hit me as I turn away. The boss explained a lot of your tricks"

_Remind me to tell Siegfried not t-_

"In any case..." the swordswoman moved her left hand, placing her finger under her eye, pulling down the lid slightly and sticking her tongue out at him. "Mind using that tongue of yours to chat to the air head over there? Seems like she's drowned in work" He turned around to look at her, Silven instantly shifting how she was stood to look casual, whistling away. "I'm not an idiot"

"Didn't say you were" She almost sang, hopping away from him. He sighed, drawing his swords once more.

Crossing over to the other side of the tent and looking at the blue haired girl, She couldn't help but wonder what she was working on, the bench full of small parts and pieces, along with tools, papers, screws, bolts and a few vials of Dust. The girl's hands moved with purpose and speed, grabbing pieces and tools and working whatever skill she had to build up the weapon she was working on. It started to go quickly from the form of a simple barrel of a gun to a scythe with a slight tinge of black to it.

"Much as I appreciate being watched by a cute girl" she spoke, her voice almost seeing silky, way too smooth for her appearance, her hand pulling back on the bolt, the gun resounding with the bullet being chambered, the girl pulling out the magazine. "I'd rather know who it is watching me rather then random strangers who could be doing whatever with their hands...though if you're one of them, mind giving me a back rub?" Silven recoiled, the girl putting the weapon down on the bench and turning to her. "Got ya"

"You this forward with everyone you meet?" Silven asked, backing up and crossing her arms.

"Yep" _Well, that was simple... _"Best to be honest with people given how things are these days"

"Point taken. Though I might need to presu-"

"Falcon" She gave a salute, but only using two fingers instead of her whole hand. "Technopath, weapons developer, veteran and the one responsible for arming half the Valean armies" _She's not up herself at all is she? _"You're Sylvia...right? Sylvia Eren Dora?" _And apparently not very attentive._

"It's 'Silven Eradora' and yes, I'm her" Falcon clicked her fingers together, leaning forward and grabbing Silven's sword, the warrior trying to stop her, but being too slow, Falcon holding the sword up, looking it over, moving it to examine it all over.

"You still use this ol' thing?" She asked, Silven nodding, though now suitable annoyed.

"Give it back..." She replied, clenching her fists.

"Oh, relax, I'm gonna give you something better my good lady" She flipped the blade in her hand, nearly hitting the Green haired woman with the sharp end. "But, if you do want this back so badly" She held her hand out, Silven snatching the sword from her, rubbing the end of the blade with her sleeve before putting it away once more. "Let's see...Where did I put it?" Falcon turned around, scrambling around her bench of many things, throwing up tools, attachments and other menagerie of items that only she knew what to do with, and the occasional clunk of steel made her think it was something important at times. "Ah, here we go...what'd you call your weapons again?"

"I didn't"

Falcon grabbed something off the top, throwing it up and catching it once more in the air and turning around, holding a long sword in her hands, though seemingly out of shape at the handle. The blade itself was as long and sharp as it was normally, or at least appeared to be so. Silven couldn't quite work it out from sight. The blade was shining, coloured silver, unlike the common steel like appearance of her sword. The handle itself was green, with one side larger the the other, with a hollowed out section and, the woman noted, a trigger on one side of the handle. She raised an eyebrow at this point.

"A Gunnir?" She enquired, Falcon nodding.

"Sieggy made a special request. Said your sword needed an upgrade, but that I couldn't work on it." She shook her head, passing Silven the blade, the warrior taking it and noting the perfect balance of weight, the ease and comfort whilst holding it, taking a step back and taking a few practise swings with it. "I heard a friend of mine supplied you with that revolver, much as I dislike the idea of a revolver based pistol, I will give him credit that it's effective"

"Never gone a battle without using it...though I wish the reload were quicker"

"The benefit of magazine loaded Gunnirs" She smiled, crossing her arms. "It's not able to fire the Dust rounds, but I've managed to up the calibre in exchange. Ejection is through the handle, don't question it, it works, and unlike most other weapons, no need to charge the mag, just point the end of the blade and shoot. Should be easy enough for even you to remember" She hooked her finger through the trigger guard, pointing the blade at a target, pulling the trigger and hearing a click. "Does help if you load it. Custom is to name your weapons. Meant to make you more...committed to bring it back to fix" _Sure, and no way in any shape or form meant to just be for bragging rights. _"Hell, my wings are in the corner...not grabbing them until I need them to head out with" _Wings? Not going to ask...her secret after all _"Just do it. You'll shut people up if you do"

"I swear you guys are just trying to humiliate me..."

She put her sword away, putting a hand on her side as Falcon passed her three mags, the warrior attaching them slowly. What could she call them? A gun and a sword didn't suit most ideas of what people thought as. It was either infantry of the line or knights of old. Still, this was a new age of battle. One in which weapons were not as simply defined as close quarters or Ranged combat. Gunnir's bridged the gap between the two sections. It was an age where the wandering of civilisation could establish itself against the world and begin to form more then tribes and confederacies, an age where knights wandered.

An age of...Errant knights...warriors who inspired tales of valour, of courage, of faith, of chivalry and honour. Knights who fought to protect those who couldn't protect themselves. A shield of Faith, and the sword of valour...

"Errant knight" Silven finally spoke, Falcon raising an eyebrow. "The revolver will be Faith, the sword will be Valour, and together they will protect the innocent"

"That's what they all say, girlfriend" Falcon spoke, working on the Gunnir. "The 'protect the innocent' part anyway. No one ever keeps their word. Soon as it becomes difficult to do, they abandon the knights oath, and leave them to die...but that's just my view"

_Least she's honest... _

"And that's not all Dear Falcon is" Silven blinked. This was a new one...albeit familiar to her. A woman who could almost read her mind.

She turned around, her face starting to form a smile as she started to see the woman. A tall woman, built with a slender figure, cloaked and garbed in a simple blue one piece dress. Her hair was long, going down her back, cascading like a black shadow, and covering her right eye. Her face was clear of all marks, and her pale complexion stood out. She gave a calm smile to Silven, holding her hands, her ocean blue eyes looking at the girl, way too beautiful for what she was, with a respectable chest.

"It's been a long time...Dear Silven" She spoke, her voice seeming to just flow out of her. Silven stepped forward, her face beaming with her arms wide.

"Ember, I haven't seen you in too long" She spoke, Ember holding her arms open, the pair holding each other, both chuckling. "How've you been holding up since last I saw you?"

"I've been well, My dear. Work has been wonderful and the people have been world class" She looked around the tent quickly, seeing everyone giving them odd looks before letting Silven go, backing away from her. "Forgive me, but I believe we'd be less of a distraction outside. If we could, I'd appreciate a catch up" Silven more then nodded, looking to Falcon.

"Once Kaine's out, we're heading out. Grab me when she's ready"

"Yeah, yeah. Go have your nostalgic moments with beauty over there" Falcon smiled as she said this, giving her a quick thumbs up. "Come on, these guys are going to be fair game for me if your not careful"

"Thanks Falcon..."

She started heading outside, Dark crying out as he did a few more swings into his routine, smashing his swords into the training dummy. She held the tent flap open for the taller woman, letting her out first before following out, the sun now bearing down upon the camp site. Ember stood to one side, her hands held together, in front of her chest. Silven was opposite her.

"How's your spellcraft coming along?" Silven enquired, looking straight at the woman. Ember closed her eyes as she tilted her head, smiling.

"It's stronger then ever" Ember held her hand out, open and facing upwards, a blue ball of fire hovering above it. "It's only gotten stronger since the Daedalus campaign. I used to barely be able to ignite camp fires"

"Considering when I met you you struggled to form any sort of fire...it's been too long"

"You were 8 when I met you...I was 28"

"And 10 years pass by quick my friend" She brushed some hair out of her face, Ember responding by tilting her head to one side once more. "And we must change alongside it, or else we fall to the tides of fate"

"Speaking of change...I hear the young Kaine still accompanies you" The green haired woman raised an eyebrow, scratching the side of her head.

"Couldn't really get rid of her..." She looked down, crossing her arms. "To be fair...I'm all she has left" Ember blinked a couple of times before continuing, though unable to look at Silven.

"Was her family..."

"By Grimm...4 years ago. I got there too late to be of any use" She looked back up, shaking her head. "Ever since...she's rarely left my side. If I move, she moves. If I fight, she supports with a crossbow or a rifle"

"Oh. So she never takes to the melee" Silven sighed, shaking her head, looking away.

"She's not like us...she's innocent...I'd rather she stay out and stay as she is then...join us..." She held her arm, her eyes looking downcast. "She's good at what she does..."

"She'll be safe Silven...after all, Gunnirs and what not..." She stepped forward, putting a hand on Silven's shoulder, the warrior feeling almost...calmed by the act. "Besides, she's got us. We'll keep her safe" She looked down to on side, putting her hand on top of Ember's, smiling.

"...Thanks...Ember...nice to know you haven't changed in all these years" Ember chuckled, moving her hand and patting Silven on the head, rubbing .

"You need to relax more, Silven. You'll age before your time if you don't" Silven blushed, but didn't move, looking down at the ground. "You're still but a child...go out, play, enjoy life whilst you are still young..."

"If it were that easy, Ember...we wouldn't be here" She confessed, sighing. "If we could walk away, leave all this behind us, we would. But it's never that simple..."

"It could be...if you made it so..."

"There's no where for Technopaths these days. Kaine will never have a home she hasn't earned...I can stop as soon as I have the money, though I know I'll never truly be safe..."

She brushed Ember's hand off of her head, stepping to one side and crossing her arms once more, sighing. Down the range, people were packing up the tents, getting ready to move out once more. She couldn't help but wonder how many of them would return at the end of the battle...how many would come back to help the construction. She sighed, shaking her head before finding a pair of arms wrapped around her neck, holding her in a comforting embrace, Ember placing her head on Silven's shoulder.

"As I said...you need to relax..." She explained. "Don't worry about them...What matters is you survive...correct?" Silven looked down, taking a short breath before answering, what with the almost awkward position she was caught in. "We'll protect others by doing all we can, beyond that, we must hope that they can protect themselves" She clenched her fist, but putting a hand on the arm around her, holding it lightly.

"I know...I know all too well..." She looked away from the older woman, swallowing from nerves. "That's why I have to be here. Someone has to be the one to make the story have a happy ending...a happier ending then either I or Kaine can ever have..." Ember chuckled slightly, smiling.

"Siegfried would be upset to hear you say that, my dear"

"Yeah, well...he's lived through the Crusades, he can live through me saying we won't have a happy ending"

"He's lived through more then you'll ever know..."

A series of coughs came from someone behind the pair, both turning around and seeing Falcon standing behind them, arms crossed, a pair of black swords stylised to look like feathers, her clothing now with a few spare plates here and there. She looked like less of a warrior and more of a walking husk of iron and leather. Dark was stood beside her, facing away, arm on his side, shaking his head. And Kaine...Kaine was opposite from Dark, giving the pair an innocent but seemingly knowing too much smile. Her clothing had changed, now wearing clothes akin to the mythical Crimson Beowulf slayer...albeit dressed in green instead of red. It almost suited her...almost, though the massive rifle barrel peering over her head stuck out, along with the blades of the weapon itself folded into the barrel.

"Ready to go Bossman" Falcon spoke, shaking her head. Ember let her go, Silven stepping forward and brushing herself down. "Take it you need a few more minutes"

"No...no...we're good to go" She rubbed under her eyes, giving the group a confident grin. "Right...So...We're moving out. Just erm...yeah..."

"Silvy, maybe we should take take Emby with us" Kaine spoke, almost meekly, eyebrow raised. Ember merely smiled, tilting her head with her eyes closed once more.

"Forgive me, whilst I would love to join you on your merry adventure with your team, I have a mission to deal with on the mountain" She put her hands in front of her once more, holding them together. "However, if you find yourself nearby, I'll be more then happy to come and help you in whatever struggles you may be in" Silven couldn't help but smile, turning to Ember and giving her a nod.

"Thanks Ember...We'll make sure to do so"

"Not like we'll need her" Dark spoke, starting to walk away. "Come on boss...this ol' sandfly needs to get moving" Falcon swing her look from him to Silven, then walking after him, swinging her arms off.

"Oh come on, Shady man, I was thinking Skanda"

"Do you even know what a Skanda is?" Silven shook her head, Kaine walking up to Ember and throwing her arms around her.

"It was good to see you again, Aunty Emby" She spoke, letting her go swiftly.

"As it was with you dear girl...now run along" Kaine nodded, stepping away slowly before swinging around, running after the others. "You too, Sylvia" Silven blushed, starting to walk away.

"See you on the other side" She spoke, putting a hand on her shoulder and flexing it. "And you better stay damn well safe...we've both got a lot of catching up to do"

_Friends from old times can be the greatest things to find, especially those whom you have the greatest bond._

_For Saint Silven, her history was one of despair, of turmoil and chaos. And yet she rose above this and became an icon._

_Those dark days have a record of notable heroes...not all have become as memorable, nor as important as her._

_Were things different...a lot of them may have been as famous...or infamous as she is._

THERE! 6 pages...god that hurt.


	4. Chapter 3

Yeah, I've made a challenge with this. To finish it before the premier of RWBY volume 2 at RTX this year, which is...effectively when this tale becomes...I don't want to say redundant, but when this story is out of line of the newest iteration. Though saying that, I will honestly be amazed if Monty makes this story more in line with Canon lol. (Suddenly Saint Silven in the history of Vale. XD (actually, I love the idea, but you know. The odds are -LOW- of that happening)) But yeah, one thing to note right now, personalities in this are not meant to be fleshed out. This is going off of what Ozpin knows of the tale, with no knowledge of the interims. What you see is what you get, so with that in mind, ONWARDS!

And this fight scene...I feel bad writing it. Maybe I'm too rusty, but it doesn't feel right.

* * *

_Leaders are rarely chosen. They come to the fore given time and dedication, one of the things people don't realize._

_Another is that being a leader is not a privilege, reserved only for those in high places_

_It is a burden, one that must be carried for as long as they are in a position of command_

_for any mistake they make reflects on themselves. Any mistake that puts an ally in danger reflects on their incompetence._

"Just a nest right?" Falcon asked, over looking the cave that they group were supposed to be fighting in. It was on it's own, near the coastline, just outside of high tide range. The group were standing on a cliff nearby, Silven kneeling near a makeshift shrine to the fallen, offering her prayers and thoughts in the midday sun. 3 days had past since they departed the camp site, 3 days of travelling, of hunting, of fighting. But 3 days of surviving none the less.

"Yeah...at most it's 5 of them. Major and 4 others" She told her, standing back up, her sword in her hand. "If all goes well...Kaine should be able to take at least one down without taxing her too much"

"Hey...Kaine finds that insulting" Kaine spoke, loading up her rifle. Silven chuckled, smiling as she adjusted her grip on her sword.

"Don't worry Kaine...I'm just jesting"

"You better be Silvy"

"If we can end this bullshit conversation" Dark interjected, juggling some arrows in his hands, trying to burn the time. "What's the damn plan?"

"Easy...if we can take out the minors, the Major can't take on four of us at a time" Silven couldn't help but wonder how well made this plan was, but it was all she had. Ursas were never easy to manipulate, nor plan around. They responded purely on instinct, like animals. "Just remember...weak spots on the neck, the underside and arms"

"Yeah, like we'd forget, given that it's body has bone hide otherwise, Captain Obvious"

"We just need a way to get them out of there, right?"Silven nodded, Falcon crossing her arms, rubbing under her chin. "I might have an idea...though...well, it's...strange request" She turned around, uncrossing her arms and slamming her fists together. "Anyone got any Dust on them?"

"Depends" Dark flipped a vial out of his clothing as he said this, spinning it in his hand. "What do you need it for, Technopath?"

"A lot more then you'd ever understand, Bright spark" Dark shook his head, lowering the vial as he got the bow off his back. "But then, what should I expect from a dunderhead of Silmeria?"

"What did you say?"

"Both of you knock it off!" Silven yelled, getting between the pair quickly, even before Dark even turned around. "Jeez, working with you two is like making sure Kaine leaves the chocolate bars alone" "Hey" "Now if you two don't mind, start getting the hell along or I WILL throw the pair of you off this cliff"

The pair looked at her, Silven shifting her gaze from Falcon to Dark, holding at him for a good minute before looking back to Falcon. Both looked like they were as ready to tear the head off the other...or worse, only the pair of them knew, Silven didn't want to think about it, and Kaine...was Kaine, polishing up the barrel of her Gunnir. The only sounds between the trio were the breeze the odd breath, and the sound of Silven's armour as she turned her head. She could feel Falcon's fingers tracing the edges of her swords, Dark's hand as it went over the wood of his bow, the breeze blowing through all three sets of armour.

And then...then it finally happened...

Dark smiled...

In fact it was more then a smile, it was a laugh...more a chuckle but a laugh none the less. The swordsman shook his head, turning away. "A runt like you throwing me off. Now I've heard every damn thing this week." He lifted the vial up, throwing it over to Falcon, the woman grabbing it in mid air before it hit her square in the face, shaking her head. "Just do whatever. If Greeny can throw me off a cliff, Chances are you can do anything"

"Trust me, Shadow boy" Falcon spoke, opening the vial quickly and pouring the raven coloured sandy substance onto her gloved palm. "You've been holding out on me here. This is a gold mine"

"Whatever, if you've got a plan, just do it already. That was my last for a while"

"Trust me, It'll be damn well worth it, Hun'"

Ursa always left a home in packs. Everyone knew that, even the most green of recruits did, save for Kaine. However, 'Whilt only 4 of 5 left at a time, they were always led by a leader, a Major as it were called, the Alpha of the nest. These beasts were rare enough amongst the Ursa that before it was confirmed, they were considered nothing but myths, fairy tales given too much weight in order to scare kids to stay in bed, to behave and to eat their greens. It worked, for the most part. Kids were too scared to leave their beds out of fear the house would get torn down by a roving pack of Ursa, the behaviour improved...if only because they didn't want to be fed to said beast, and their greens...still didn't get eaten. That was the one thing that didn't change in the tale. Though kids were more prone to using forks to sharpen Broccoli into little green spears and Potatoes into mini shields.

Silven remembered those tales fondly as she knelt behind a boulder, separating her from the cave and the newest hunting party to leave the cave. It was 2 young, the lack of much of the skeletal armour gave it away, 2 elders and a major, and the major towered above the others like a tree to a weed. _If only those folk tales were true...I wouldn't be needing this sword _She pondered, readusting her grip, Dark moving up to another boulder nearby, bow drawn, ready to fire. _Infact...if half the tales were true, we wouldn't be here, fighting for our future about no. In fact the Grimm would be nothing more then a legend. Though that makes us legend slayers if that's the case. _Dark took a breath, cracking his shoulders as he looked over the boulder, bow held by his side, Silven swearing it was taller then he stood if he held it up to aim. _Though...much as I'd rather not have this job at all...the people doing it are the ones worth saving...a tragedy if I ever saw one._

"HEY! BEASTY!"

_Falcon's started then_

She looked over the rock towards the woman, blatantly walking over to the group of Ursa, arms wide open, no weapon drawn, completely defenceless. Whatever the Technopath was thinking, Silven didn't like it, getting ready to dash in and save her, right as all 5 of the Ursa started to examine her, taking in her scent.

"Hey, hey" one of the young walked over to her, sniffing at her, getting a boot to the face in return. Dark shook his head, turning away and exchanging looks with Silven. 'Do we have to save her?' he mouthed, Silven giving him a glare and a half in response. "Don't touch the merchandise unless you want to pay for it...my last partner at least had THAT courtesy" the over Ursa came forward, the youth that received the booting now hiding behind the major. "Now, now, seems like your all mad. Let's just go in there and talk about this"

She pulled a hand back, a red glow erupting around it, her face changing from one of sheer confidence to glee. She threw her hand forward, the glow jumping out, then quickly flying towards the cave, expanding as it got closer. At the last minute, it expanded, growing in size until eventually, it formed a colossal fireball, striking at the roof. A loud bang erupted and echoed from within as the whle system rumbled, the section on show almost seeming to disintegrate as it collapsed. Silven and Dark both looked on in awe as the technopath stood there, smiling as the result of her work began to form, smoke, dust and rubble being thrown up around what had been the entry to their home, and still she didn't look scared. In fact, she looked as calm as she just had done, even with the Ursa now bearing down on her.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I hope you had insurance for that..." one of the youth charged towards her, starting to swing a claw towards her. Though the warrior just threw a punch towards the claw, Ice quickly forming around it, making a razor sharp point that dug into the flesh of the creature, coming out the other end with a red tinge to it. "That'll be an injection or two...though this one" She slammed her left foot into the ground,and beneath the young Ursa shot up through it's chest, the reddy brown spear holding on it the beasts heart. "This might need poppies..."

"DARK! KAINE! NOW!" Silven ordered, Falcon dashing back as the major charged her, the woman making laughing sounds as the ice seemed to shrink back into her hand.

Several loud bangs rang out from behind the trio, with each one followed by a ping on the hide of the Major. One shot however, was met with a squelch, the bullet tearing into the skull of the elder Ursa, knocking it out dead. Dark took a quick shot with his bow, firing an arrow at one of the minors, the arrow flying out and digging into the leg of the creature. He raised an eyebrow, standing up as the beast kept running.

"Damn things! IT'S EXPLODE ON CON-" The beast jumped in front of him as he was shouting this, the arrow exploding, taking the leg and a majority of the chest with it, both flying either side of the swordsman. He blinked as the corpse halves flew by him, turning around and looking back at it, lifting an arrow up to look at the tip. "I got timed? For god sake...Next thing you know I'll be saved by the Green-"

Silven was taking shots with her sword as this was going on, the recoil being absorbed inside the sword's barrel each time, but her shots pinged harmlessly off the hide. The creature was making for Dark, Silven dashing forward, slamming into him and knocking him to one side and raising her shield up.

**THUNK**

The beast's gaping maw and her shield collided, Silven straining under the pressure of the creature's weight, gritting her teeth. "Too bad!" She shouted, moving her blade around so that the point was under it's jaw, taking a shot, the bullet whizzing through, a trail of blood flowing afterwards. He took a quick swing as well, decapitating the beast, throwing it off her shield and firing one more into it's gut. Dark got up from where he had fallen, looking at the green haired swordswoman and sighing, shaking his head.

"That doesn't count" He spoke.

"Sure it does" She replied, looking around quickly. "Where's Falcon!"

"HEY! BEASTY!" The pair knew where it was coming from, and the bangs seemed to aid this growing suspicion that it was still nearby, running after it with all due haste. The same Pings were being made as Falcon led the beast on a merry chase over the sands, dodging it's attacks as if they were nothing, jumping it's claws, lifting up a hastily formed Ice shield if it went for a bit, even throwing sand in it's eye at one point, all serving to heighten it's anger, it lashed out more and more, faster and faster. Silven almost paused in awe as Falcon just...seemed to know exactly what to do and when to do it.

"Any time now Silv, Black" Falcon spoke, slamming a fist down in the ground, a solid mass of earth forming between her and the beast as it's claws tried once more to dig in. Silven nodded, dashing in, Dark getting the same idea, drawing his swords quickly, the beast suffering as it's claws held steadfast in the solid material. She dashed up it's back, slashing at it all the while as Dark slid underneath, taking swipes at it's chest. Silven couldn't tell how fast Dark was going on his end, only that she was swinging with everything she had at the gaps in it's hide, each one bouncing off, a ting sound being emanated from each one. She took the sword back, quickly aiming the revolver and firing a shot into it's back. Whilst the gun definitely fired, the bullet connected, but the Dust failed to initialise, the casing harmlessly bouncing off into the earth, a section of it freezing.

"CRAP! BACK OFF! BACK OFF!" Silven ordered, jumping off back wards as Dark followed her, putting his swords away as he got his bow off his back, the sand flying up behind him as he firing an arrow into it's flank, the projectile bouncing harmlessly off.

"Tough hide...tougher then expected" He spoke, shaking his head. "Guess we need to learn how to fight these bastards"

"Falcon's...whatever it is, seemed to work on the young. Unless her abilities are as short sighted as the Ursa's eye sight, it should be able to pierce it"

"Yeah...about that...where is Fly girl?"

Silven paused in her speech, turning around as she kept running, seeing Falcon limping away behind the rocks, her face showing a small cut on it, oozing small sections of blood. Had she taken a hit? Was that all the Major could do to her? She looked over to the duo, shaking her head. Moving away at a slower pace then normal, the Major breaking the rocks apart as it tore it's arm out of the earthen bindings, the bonds quickly becoming sand once more and pouring to the ground. The pair did a quick turn, heading over to Falcon, but keeping out of reach of the disorientated Ursa. They covered the small distance quickly, yet it seemed to have affected the trio in varying ways. Where as Dark and Silven were breathing almost normally, Falcon's was laboured, hoarse and almost as if she were in pain, holding her right arm with her left.

"Guess I pushed that too far" She spoke, almost throwing herself at Dark, her balance gone. "I...would rather explain...later...think you can..finish it off for me?"

"B-but how? We can't break that hid-" Falcon gulped as Silven got explaining, shaking her head. "What..."

"You don't know..."

"Skygirl, even I've not fought too many Major, how the hell do we do this?" Dark told her, holding her up.

"Get a blade...under it's armour...prise it off and hit it" Dark and Silven exchanged glances once more, both coming to the same realisation.

"The Gunnir Bayonet" Falcon gave a knowing smile as the pair came to the same answer, getting a look from both of them.

"You knew?" Dark asked.

"I've fought...enough of these things...to know how to beat em...so I made Kaine's weapon the key..." Silven grabbed her collar, dragging her up to look her in the eye.

"You knew she'd be in melee? HOW?"

"I didn't...I thought I'd...be able to break it...before I ran out of steam..." She coughed, blood splashing onto Silven's armour, the warrior ignoring it. "Just...give me a bit...to catch my breath...and I'll be back out there"

"Falcon..."

"Go...I'll be fine"

A Roar behind them broke them out of their conversation, Dark quickly putting Falcon down in against a boulder, the woman giving him a knowing look as she placed a hand on the sand. "Good luck" The same earthen barrier she formed before came up once more, this time as a dome, swallowing her up, sealing itself and holding firm. Dark shook his head, grabbing his swords once more.

"That bitch better answer us after all this"

"She will...but come on...We've got a fight to win"

"SILVY!"

_For crying out loud_

Kaine came dashing up from behind, holding her Gunnir in her hands, aiming it towards the Ursa, bayonet attached. Just before she reached the line the two had made, she tripped in the sand, the blade sticking into the ground, the girl slamming head first into the handle before hitting the ground. Dark chuckled slightly, Silven bending down and helping her back up.

"I want Tag in, I want tag in!" Kaine excitedly proclaimed,,a prospect which terrified Silven more then the idea of Kaine nearly having shot the pair, or impaled one of their feet. "Please, Kaine can fight up front"

"Remind me to str- I mean" Dark paued in his speech, turning awaywith his swords ready. Try and keep up"

"Who made you boss?" Silven asked, taking a defensive stance next to Kaine.

"Well, she has to be in sometime doesn't she. If she wants to fight now, means she wants in the melee she normally hates" _Hate to admit, he has a point _"Now be a good girl and let her take a fucking place and fight" She sighed, her stance slackening a tad.

"Kaine, remember those combat lessons you had?" Silven asked, Kaine nodded happily, taking a defensive stance the other side of Silven, holding the Gunnir with the blade pointing towards the Ursa, now recovering it's balance properly.

"Kaine! Prise it's bones off. Dark, you and me will keep it busy. New plan once we've got one off. Got it!?"

"Aye ma'am"

"Let's Rock it!"

The Ursa saw the trio of them, charging straight towards them. Kaine jumped to the side, Dark rolling out of the way, and Silven standing her ground. The beast took a swing towards her, Silven raising her shield too slowly, getting clobbered by it, thrown back over the sands, rolling along them for several feet. She cough as she started getting back up, using her sword for balance. _Allright...that's the only one he get's _She thought, taking her stance once more, the beat still charging at her.

It pulled it's arm back once more, making another swing her her, only this time, Silven raised her shield in time, the beast slamming into it, knocking her to the side through sheer force alone, the woman's feet sliding as she fought to remain standing, hearing her shield whine from the stress, the claws themselves uncomfortably close to her face. The beast held there though, trying to force her over, pushing with everything it had.

BOOM! BOOM BOOM!

The beast fell over to one side, 3 explosions at it's feet blowing it away from Silven, the woman nearly falling over when she got her freedom once more. She looked to once side, seeing Dark stringing arrows to blast at it. Kaine was behind it, running up to it's back, jumping and landing on it, but slipping, swinging the scythe quickly and impaling the blade into it's spine. The creature Roared, getting up quickly, bucking wildly to try and throw the young girl off. Kaine held tightly to her Gunnir, eyes screwed shut crying out as she fought through the bucks, almost frozen by fear.

"KAINE!" The girl reopened her eyes as she heard Silven's call, shaking her head, taking a hand away to rub the back of her head.

"Sorry! Kaine will do her job now!" came the reply, pulling back on the bolt and firing the gun, the creature crying out as the bullet dug in.

"You'd have thought this thing would have rolled over by now" Dark commented, firing another arrow at it's feet, another explosion ringing out, this time sand blowing into it's eyes. Silven backed off, flicking out the chamber of her revolver, removing the bullets and pulling out 6 different rounds, these ones coloured crimson, with black tips, feeding each one in before flicking it back in. She aimed the revolver quickly, firing two shots at it's eyes, the sand quickly forming into glass, causing the Ursa to cry out louder.

"THAT'S NOT HOW IT WORKS!" Dark yelled.

"Dark, it's Dust, don't question it!" Silven yelled back, firing another shot off, this one catching the beasts foot, fusing it to the sand. "That should help. KAINE! THE BONES!"

"On it Silvy!" Kaine yelled back, kicking the Gunnir, knocking the blade out of the beast's back, the creature crying out as it happened, then quickly spinning it around, slamming the blade back in so that it stuck under a plate on it's back.

This seemed to really piss it off, for the level at which it roared increased in both regularity and volume, the claw coming out of the glass with a storm of sparkles, standing up on all fours to try and reach around, finding itself unable to. However, Kaine hung onto her Gunnir with all her strength, her solid foundations now gone from beneath her, now raised back beside her. She put her feet on the creature's back, trying to stay on. However, much to Silven and Dark's amazement, she was in the perfect spot.

"FIRE THE DAMN GUNNIR!" Dark ordered, Kaine slowly but surely working her way to the bolt, climbing like a sloth. When she got to the bolt, she pulled it down towards her, then away from the beast, the last casing flying out to the ground, landing with a dull thud in the sand, then putting it back into place slowly with a satisfying 'cling'. She moved an arm further back, placing a finger against the trigger, pushing it in.

BLAM! SQUELCH! CRACK!

The bullet flew out, blasting the creature's back, the bone buckling at the impact. The Scythe followed it, the recoil yanking it out, taking the bone clean out with it, blood flying everywhere behind the Ursa as it's internals were exposed, Kaine almost seeming to fly off as the bone followed her. It stood for a few moments, blood gushing out of the hole on it's back, Dark and Silven keeping their stances ready in case it wasn't finished.

The blood had spread a good 5 meters before the flow slowed slightly, the beast collapsing to it's chest slowly, seeming to take an eternity for each small section to crumble, before it's chin eventually crashed upon the sands, still, silent.

Dead. No breath, no sound apart from the slosh of the blood coming out of it. Silven smiled, walking over to the now blood red Kaine, shaking her head.

"You always seem to end up somewhere where you fall over" She spoke, holding a hand out for her. "either that or somewhere requiring you to just hang on for dear life"

"Silvy" Kaine whined, her face almost starting to shrivel up as she noticed the blood. "I may...stick to sniping from now on"

"You did better then I thought you would...hell, I was expecting you to let go and have the Gunnir land on your head, Scythe in the sands" Her face almost instantly unshrivelled at this point as Kaine went between a mix of blushing and the blood flowing down her face, Silven patting her on the head. "Come on...you need a wash"

"We've got other things to worry about you two idiots" Dark told them, Kaine pulling herself up on Silven's hand. "Falcon? The Death Stalker? Ring any bells?"

"Oh...crap" She looked back to Kaine, looking at her uniform. "Come on, Blood Red riding hood,. We've got a Falcon to find"

"Yay, We're playing hide and seek"

"...Green...how old is she again?"

"Don't ask..."

* * *

Yeah, it REALLY didn't feel right. I just...can't place why. Maybe it's tiredness, maybe it's rust, maybe it's both and maybe it's stress or...whatever. Who the hell knows. But not long until season 2 premiers so I need to work faster. Next few chapters shouldn't be too hard, and we're not actually far from the end. Like I said, it's a short story, just to challenge myself to do it and to do a short story. But we hit my longest at 7 pages...albeit not with good combat. I can do 1v1's fine, so I might just do it where we only get Silven's (or whoever the Protag is at that point) POV of the bttle, but in third person. Easier to work with and plays to my strengths


	5. Chapter 4

Yeah...you know, I can't exactly think of anything clever to say aside from I've got my work cut out for me. But, in any case, this chapter...this is one I've always had an idea for, but I've never had a chance outside of an RP to do it, and then I could never do this justice in that one instance. This is the one scene that I've been wanting to do since I saw the bigger creatures in the RWBY setting, and they are the ones that always caught my imagination whenever I thought of fights in the series. Yes, Human vs Human (+/- oid in both cases) looks flashy, and is indeed fast and frantic, but there was always something more for me in the humans fighting the creatures that could level houses. Whatever the case...Lock and take stock.

* * *

_Semblances are funny things...even considering the limits of our Auras._

_No one really knows when we got them. No one knows when we learned to master them._

_Majias brought us the knowledge and materials to begin refining and harnessing Dust._

_In the various realms...we all have tales of who first learnt to control their aura._

"...so let me get this straight" Dark spoke, the party heading through the woods towards an old ruined fort, the alleged home of the Death Stalker they had been sent after. The aftermath of the slaying of the Ursa and the pack still rang out from an hour or two ago. "You...your part Dust? Falcon nodded, pouring the sandy-substance onto a wound, the crystals vanishing upon contact as the gash closed up.

"About half or so, but yes" Falcon replied, now stronger then before. "My body absorbs Dust and Dust based attacks like Cotton absorbs water, though it has it's pros and cons, shady"

"I'm guessing an upside of the fact that you can manipulate it as you need" Silven commented.

"That's one part of it. Ice, Lightning, Fire, Earth, Water, I can make anything if I put my mind to it, though it puts stress upon my body"

"I'll bet. Having a body that's part what you're burning for attacks, never going to end well" Dark again, now oddly calmer then before.

"The longer I use it, and the more powerful the effect I go for, the more stress it puts upon my body. From what I've been told my right lung and left kidney have been totally reconstructed from it after I pushed my limits too often, so forgive me if, in the heat of battle, my breath suddenly goes, amongst other things"

"On the bright side, it makes you damn powerful"

"Though I am forever stuck to the material, ever pouring more of it into my wounds until...well...I shudder to think" Dark pushed a branch out of the way, holding it for Falcon to move by and letting it go, hearing a small 'ow' as it slammed into Kaine's face, knocking her down, leaves flying up from where she had just hit the dirt.

"So, that means your healing factor, your weapon skill, your magicks, your...EVERYTHING is basically here because of the Warrior of Dust harnessing it, right? Even enhanced"

"I wouldn't say everything, hot shot. My chest didn't grow at all" Silven could feel her face flush at this, trying to blot out the image. "Though...I have been told that I could be the most powerful person in the world...for one minute, then I'd die, simple as that. But before I became...this...I was still skilled. Hell, it's after I became this I started working on weaponry"

"Simple as that? You don't need to be the most powerful in the world if you can just use enough to get the job done"

"Shadow-boy, why do you think I use my swords and guns so much. People may think that I'm nothing but a damn blue haired technopath who's eye's look oddly birdlike" Silven raised an eyebrow, turning her head and looking, not noticing the eye difference at all. "But I'm more complex then that. I'm dust, tech and skill all rolled into one hot package"

"Falcon, if you keep this up, I will slap you" Silven told her, Falcon shrugging and holding her hands up defensively.

"Hey, he's asking, least I can do is answer"

"Yeah, well, at least clean it up. Don't want Kaine to wind up with questionable virtues after trying to match you" This time, Falcon moved a branch out of the way for the pair, letting it swing back, Kaine ducking under it, the blade of the bayonet cutting it in two. Though as she got back up, the branch slammed into the barrel, knocking her over once more, this time onto her front, a small 'ow' coming from her. "But still...have to ask, if this power of yours is so strong, but so costly, why don't you just keep a solid supply of Dust on hand?"

"Because if I did I'd be walking around with a massive barrel strapped to my back which doesn't help in combat and weighs a metric ton...and do you realise how much Schnee charge for that? I'd work until I die of old age and not pay them off. And I'm barely before my prime now"

"Yeah...though I'd assum-" Dark paused, blinking as he worked it out. "Wait...a barrel load is 'a solid supply'?" Falcon nodded.

"That would cover a current fight if I went all out with my Dust abilities. Take out the steel, the bullets and the acrobatics and I'd need a barrel load to cover the same amount of combat. Though right now a barrel load is roughly...2 months supply"

"Damn girl...That lasts me a year and a half"

"Yeah, well, you deal in Dust-tipped arrows. Silven in Dust-loaded ammo. Both are minor, tiny amounts of Dust in comparison to what I do"

"She's got a point there" Kaine spoke, brushing leaves out of her hair. "I mean, to get the kind of effect that you guys rely on in combat, I'm pretty sure is just a pinch of the stuff. To get the large ice shards, the fireballs, the...erm..."

"I can walk on frozen shards of air" Silven didn't even ask. She just shook her head. This woman was alleging to pull off miracles? Granted she didn't know what Dust could do to the body, but...even that was pushing it.

"So...how exactly did this come about? I mean you don't exactly wake up one day and find that your body has been reconstituted so that your have Dust flowing within you and that you can harness the powers" Dark had a good point. Falcon sighed, scratching behind her ear, then the back of her shoulder blade.

"That's a story for another time. Besides, you're not likely to tell us why your here. Silmeria's a dead city miles away on a different continent. What's a member of the Silmerian Legion doing out here? Never mind the debt you owe"

"That's as likely as Silven explaining why her hair is green and how she met young Dragoon over there"

"Well, how about this as a deal" Silven started, turning around and walking backwards, looking over the trio. "Once we take this Death stalker down, we kill it then set camp. We can do the stories and answers then. After all, I doubt Grimm will go near a Death Stalker, dead or alive" The trio nodded, Silven turning away once more, just in time for the trees to clear, giving a clear view on the area.

Directly in front of the opening was a long, deep ravine, with a small thin crossing in the ground, a river running down the middle of the bottom of it, tall stones, boulders and logs cluttering it, Rapids near the end of it, leading to a tall waterfall. The other side of the crossing was a large clearing, with tall stone buildings, weathered and falling apart from age, but still secure, strong in appearance. Moss covered several sections of the buildings. There were 5 or 6 structures, or even half structures if anything had survived at all. The tallest of such were a pair at the back, with a weakened stone bridge at the top. For people to call this a fort was being kind. No wall, no security. If not for the enemy being Grimm, it wouldn't stand a chance in a fight, though thankfully, mankind and faunus were united against them. Crusades like the one they were on were just part of a more common war against the Grimm to establish humanity's presence in the world, to venture further then the steppes.

The one thing that wasn't part of the unnatural buildings in this scene was the body of a humongous mossy Death Stalker, it's frame facing away from the forest Silven and company were using to walk into the area. The group quickly drew weapons, seeing the creature and spreading out, aiming everything they had at it. The air grew still, the only noise coming from the river below. Death Stalkers rarely left their nest, unless pray walked in and tried to escape, where upon they would chase them to oblivion and back to feed. For one to sit around in the open was...strange.

"Hey...anyone else notice the stinger..." Dark asked, now lowering the bow. Silven stepped forward slightly, crossing the thin bridge to investigate. It's stinger was...curled up, almost too far.

"Yeah...not just that, but the lack of movement...some thing's not right" She responded, raising an eyebrow, lowering her equipment, walking slowly over. "Keep your weapons ready...might be the creature adapting..." Kaine slammed the bayonet of her rifle into the ground, pulling back on the bolt as she knelt down, resting the butt against her shoulder.

"Please...don't let it be a trap" Kaine silently spoke, Falcon barely keeping standing as her strength was still sapped from earlier.

Silven couldn't help but want to keep her shield high, and for this to actually be just a dead Death Stalker. If that stinger came down and she was stood in the way, the Shield wouldn't even save her, just giving them enough of her body left to put in a bottle and give back to whatever family she had left. But still, as she took a few more steps, now a good deal of distance away from the natural bridge, she couldn't help but notice the trail of red liquid coming from it's back. She placed a hand on it's leg as she moved around it, feeling the fading warmth in it's body.

"It's...either dead or hibernating" She told them, walking around it's frame, putting her sword away as she started climbing it. "Stay there...just in case" She slowly made her way to the top of it, the tail was impaled into it's skull, and as Silven got further up, she could see what remained of the creatures skull, never mind it's brain. But that wasn't the biggest thing that drew her attention.

A massive black feather, almost as wide as her sword was long, and as tall as at least three of her. She gasped upon seeing it, stepping forward and placing an armoured finger on it, running it along the feather itself, feeling her armoured finger getting closer as she got to the end, looking back at the front and seeing the deep marks, seeing the pink of her fingers through the gouged steel. She took an unarmoured finger and placed it on the only safe part she knew, the central rachis, holding them there for a small time.

It was hot. The feathered Spear was hot. She didn't have to hold it there for long to know that much, recoiling away quickly and swinging her hand in the air to try and cool it. And as she stepped away, her face was a frame of fear, terror and anguish.

"No...it can't be..." she whispered, grabbing her sword. It was too late, hearing the cry of the creature. She jumped off of the creature's back, running towards the rest of her team. "NEVERMORE! TAKE COVER!"

It was too late, a cry bellowed out once more, endless feathered spears impacting the bridge, almost demolishing it. Kaine quickly yanked her Gunnir out of the ground, the trio dashing into the tree line as the feathers flew their way, Dark rolling behind a tree as the last of the feathers struck home, the trio barely getting into cover. Silven slid to a halt just before she got to the bridge, watching it fall apart as the feathers forced it apart, the earth falling to the river below. Her mouth hung open, her shield held tightly in her had.

_This isn't good..._ She thought, trying her best to keep calm. She heard the cry once more, turning towards it just in time to see the massive black creature flying over head, the woman ducking, raising her shield above her head as it's massive talons tried to grab her, scraping along the steel. Suddenly they coiled around it, grabbing it and lifting her off the ground, flying away with the creature.

"SILVEN!" Kaine cried, quickly spinning around and firing a few shots off at the Nevermore, most of them hitting it, causing it to cry out each time. However, it kept going, still going ever higher. Dark's arrow flew pitifully short, not even getting close enough to be of note. And Falcon, still unable to truly support herself, could only really look on, helpless.

"Why does this shit always happen to me?" She couldn't help but ask, getting swung around as it took a sharp turn, banking to try and make another pass at the trio in the trees. She did her best to shake her head as she struggled to keep her grip on her sword. If not for the fact that it was lift threatening, she might have enjoyed flying. She looked down, noting how quickly she had gained height, barely able to see the fort below.

"If I break off now...I'll die from the fall" She said to herself, looking further up. "But if I don't break off...I'm gonna exist nevermore..." The creature cried out once more, heading in for another fly-by, diving quickly, the winds forcing Silven to hang like a flag in a hurricane to her shield, stuck to it like a bear in a trap. Kaine and Dark fired more shots off at the creature, Kaine's bullets pinging off it's almost mask-like face and Dark's arrows now exploding in the air.

It made a sharp turn, flapping it's massive wings to gain height once more, throwing more spears towards the trio below, the group barely getting out of the way once more. She gritted her teeth, her arm almost torn out of it's socket by the sudden shift in direction, pain shooting through it. "Piece of...crap...Alright, if I'm going down, I'm not going without my arm!" She yelled, doing her best to shift her sword to aim at the creature, focusing all she had into the seemingly simple action.

"Let me go!" She yelled, pulling on the trigger, firing a shot at it's foot, the creature crying out loudly before letting her go. She found herself getting a small amount of lift as it let her go, going slightly higher before finding her peak height, looking down. She couldn't even see where she needed to land to at least hit the water. "Almighty lords in the heavens above, please let me hit something soft!"

The free fall finally kicked in, the wind rushing by her as she plummeted to the ground, screaming all the while. She didn't know how fast she was going. Way too fast for her liking by any means, going head first towards the ground. She heard the beast cry once more, stopping her screams as she turned her head, looking and seeing it come at her. She moved her sword up, aiming it quickly at the beast, turning the angle of the blade to spin her around gently.

"I don't go that easy!" She cried, pulling the trigger, the bullet flying out and smashing into the creature's face, sections of it chipping off. She kept going, firing what was left of the mag into it, chipping away at it's face, breaking a hole in it big enough to get a bullet into it's eye, another cry ringing out as it broke off it's path, it's claws once more trying to swipe at her, Silven barely able to get her shield up in time to block it, the shield being knocked aside as the talon kept going, a small amount of the claw scraping her face, barely missing her eye, causing her to cry out as the blood of the pair was exposed to the air, The woman keeping her eye closed as the pain flared around her head.

"Least I did damage to the fucker!" She yelled, barely able to hear herself as she looked up towards the ground through her one good eye, swallowing one last time. "Sorry Kaine...I'm not going to be able to keep you safe any more". The ground came closer and closer at a faster and faster pace, and to her dismay, she was landing on top of the corpse of the Death stalker, right on top of the feathery spear. She closed her eyes, awaiting the inevitable impact and hopefully painless death.

….The sound of the air rushing by her had gone...so had the feeling of it...but she was sure she didn't feel the impact of hitting the ground...nor the sound of her armour as she clattered into the ground.

In fact...she could still feel the blood trickling down her eye...

"...-ven!"

In fact...she could almost hear Falcon.

"SILVEN! WAKE UP!"

She opened her eyes, looking around as she realised something...she wasn't dead. She was alive, but...how? She heard the sound of gunshots ringing out as she looked over herself, noting no real difference from before, but she was now looking skyward. She looked at her back...and that was when she was amazed at what had happened.

She had moved away from the spear she was about to land on. In fact she had moved quite far away from it, thanks to a set of 4 translucent blue wings now sprouted on her back, each one reaching as far as she could with her sword if she held her sword with her fingertips on the edge of the pommel. They seemed to glitter as well, and as they flapped themselves to a point where she was safe, landing her on the ground, a silver contrail seemed to follow them. They flapped themselves towards the safety of the ground, then adjusting her, floating slightly upwards until she was upright and landing on the ground safely.

It was then that she realised that she had realised that she hadn't breathed in all the time she had been going through this, taking a few quick pants and looking over herself as they disappeared. She couldn't believe anything of what was going on any more. First Falcon now...this. She took a bit of time in the shade of the trees to catch her breath, nodding to herself.

"I have no idea what that was..." She spoke, reasserting her grip on her sword and shield, taking a quick swing down whilst the beast landed in the fort, crying out in pain as it held it's face under it's wing, trying to hide the pain. Silven looked at it, then back to her group, seeing them looking at her, aghast. "But...I have a job to do" She grabbed a new rifle clip from her side, ejecting the last one and putting it in, swinging the blade down as she walked out of the undergrowth. "You three! Head back to camp and warn Siegfried of this! The scouts were wrong about here! They could be wrong Elsewhere!"

"What about you?! No man left behind!" Dark yelled back, as Kaine fought to dislodge her rifle, Falcon weakly standing once more. Silven gave him a confident grin back, turning to the Nevermore, starting to walk towards the fort where it resided.

"Eye for an eye..."

Dark nodded, Kaine getting her Gunnir free, the trio heading off, the warrior grabbing Falcon and carrying her away bridal style to keep her moving. Silven saw him mouth something, it looked like 'Good luck' or something like that. "I don't need luck...the heavens are on my side if that show is anything to go off"

She felt renewed confidence flow through her, her injuries seeming a million miles away at the moment. Her arm, yanked so harshly, was stronger then ever. Her eye, when not seeing the red drop of blood from the long gash down her face, was stronger then ever before. Her sword, her shield, even her armour felt lighter then before. Whatever this...power that had graced her was, or had done, she felt amazing.

Amazing enough to do the impossible, to take on a Nevermore alone...and come back alive and well.

The beast roared once more, turning around and climbing to the top of the fortress, the stones buckling and crumbling away as it moved, half of the mask of it's face shattered, revealing the inner raw bloody sections of it's face, arteries and veins showing very vividly, even at the distance she was stood, blood pouring out of it's eye. They had made one hell of a mark on it, that was for certain.

She started running towards the beast at full pelt, shield by her side, sword low. The dirt rising behind her feet. The beast cried out once more, throwing it's wings forward, the feathery spears flying out once more. Silven knew it was coming, raising her shield to protect herself, hoping the steel would hold under the assault. The feathers smashed into the ground with a dull thud, all of them forming a small forest of black, a few of them came dangerously close to smashing into hers, a few clattering off her shield, one digging in, the point going through and digging into her arm. She grunted, still running, shield held forward. All she had to do was make it to somewhere indoors. It looked to her like 300 meters to run, not too far, But getting from A to B was going to be hell. She swung her sword along her shield, cutting through the rigid spear, lightening her up, letting it fall as she sprinted once more. It cried out once more, firing another volley of spears, this time Silven jumping, luckily getting through the hail this time scot free.

She broke free of the black forest of feathers, still sprinting as fast as she could, the beast crying out once more, but this time flapping it's wings, taking off into an immediate dive into her. She held her pistol up, firing a few ice rounds into it's beak before it could open fully, freezing it into position, the beast going in for a dive. She dived herself, rolling under it's face, her feet barely avoiding the underside of it's neck. She came out of the roll fighting, swinging at it's foot with her sword, this time leaving a mark, the beast crying out once more.

She broke into a run once more, the beast trying to recover as it went for another fly around. She was within a stones throw distance when the sound of the ice snapping resounded around, a louder cry then before being issued from it. She didn't need to think twice. It was pissed off. She could hear the shrill sounds of spears flying through the sky once more, diving one more time to get out the way, rolling into the ruined walls as the mighty feathers dug into the ground where she had just been stood, the swordswoman looking back as she tried to catch her breath, thankful she had gotten out the way.

"I don't think I want to be a pincushion just yet, beasty" She said to herself, as if the beast could hear her, never mind understand her. She looked around her current defensive holding, the moss covered walls leading to another section, with the few intact ceilings being very precariously stood. One false move and they'd collapse. Hopefully when she was out of the way. She let her shield go, letting it fold up as best as it could, watching it get to the last section before jamming on the remains of the feather. She shook her head, starting to pull her arm out then crying out, the sharp pain of the spear in her arm, taking a small breath. "This is going to sting"

She put her sword down, crouching inside and grabbing the remains of the feather on the front of her shield, taking a few quick breaths before yanking it out as fast and as hard as she could, the feather stump flying out coloured crimson, the shield folding up now as she collapsed, gritting her teeth as she tried not to cry out, her breathing slowly returning to normalcy, the gaping hole in her arm bleeding.

She grabbed a bandage out of her pocket, quickly wrapping it up as tightly as she could, knotting it off and cutting it off before getting back up, her breath back, but the sweat still pouring down her. Suddenly, the room shook, dust floating down, covering her in it as she started running out via a door in the western wall from the way she came in, the roof collapsing behind her. She didn't know what the beast had done, but it was forcing her out. She left the room via a second door, seeing the beast at the entry she had just used, roaring inside. It wasn't the smartest in the world, leaving itself open to her. She looked around, trying to find the next point to run to. There was a building in front of her, single story, no roof from how it appeared just to her right as she left. There were two walls left of another room just in front of her. The two towers connected via the bridge at the second story was on the other side, but other then that, this place was a mess of broken walls and ruined buildings. Barely any cover from the beast, which wasn't going to help her out during this mess.

She unfolded the shield once more, taking a firm grip of the pistol end and tapping her knee, getting ready once more. It roared into the building, Silven dashing out of the doorway she was in, charging away towards the only other intact solo building to the right, firing off a few more shots from the sword towards it's face, firing some Dust bullets at it's feet, trying to keep it ground. The bullets froze on impact, but missed the talons, the bullets bouncing off it's hide mostly, with one digging into the flesh, causing it to scream once more. Once she was out of ammo in both, she turned away, breaking out into a full blown sprint to get away as she heard the spears flying once more, diving to get behind the stone, sections of her armour becoming gouged as the feathers flew by, one digging into her side, getting deep enough to cut into her skin, the blood stained feather impacting a wall opposite the woman, causing her to stumble, her back slamming against the stone as she felt the wound take a dent against her resolve, letting her sword clatter to the ground as she moved her hand to hold her wound, taking a few breaths. "That was too close..."

She physically shook as the roar came once more, the beast already waiting outside for her. She looked around quickly, finding the next exit. The only other way out was a doorway in the Eastern wall...but it had caved in. Much as she could climb over the stone, he knew she wouldn't be fast enough to get away. She flicked out the chamber of her revolver, emptying the casings onto the ground with a tinkle as they hit the stone, grabbing a new set of bullets and loading them up, taking her time to place each one in...then it hit her.

The ice on it's legs hadn't broken yet. It took less time with the beak, and it was the same strength as this set was. Was it in the 'just right' location to prevent it being able to take it off? She flicked the chamber back into place, spinning it before picking it back up, taking her hand off of her side. It was coated crimson, from just that small period of time. The feather had gone deeper then she had given it credit for. She couldn't burn the time to take her armour off and deal with the wound, not in this situation. She lent back, taking a couple of breaths as she tried to calm herself down, grabbing her sword and loading a new clip into the blade, staining the hand guard, and getting ready to go once more. In her mind mapping out what the area was like, she got an idea of where to go. The two walls...or the towers...if she could keep it airborne, the towers would be good for a last stand...if it got to that point. Rate they were going, they'd be killing each other. And, as she stood up, wiping imaginary blood from her mouth, then finding actual blood there instead, she looked outside, seeing the beast trying to bite it's way in, it's teeth as large as she stood.

How this thing was still going with bullets in it's skull, she'd never know, nor how it was working with so much blood missing was another tale. Saying that, how was she still going, her eye wound, her side, her arm, all she needed now was a leg wound to complete the set. _Let's not tempt fate..._ She thought, cracking her neck as she regained her balance, preparing herself once more, taking a few quick breaths. There was a roar from the avian, Silven spinning around, pistol ready as she got to the doorway.

_It's show time_

She pulled the trigger, firing a bullet at it's mouth, freezing it open, the beast recoiling from the surprise. She kept walking forward, firing more bullets at it, putting two into it's mouth and three into it's legs, building on the previous ice mounds before breaking out into a run, firing rifle rounds once more into the beast's head, trying to go through it's chin, the bullets ricocheting off harmlessly, and as she ran between it's leg with a hail of spent shells and the shower of blood, she made sure to take a swing at it's leg, this time the blade going through the left talon with some difficulty, but cutting it off nonetheless, a trail of blood erupting from it as she left. It hopped for a time, trying to stay stable before falling over, crying out loudly. Silven was thankful at this point that they never had a partner unless it was mating season. She got within jumping distance when she heard the shrill cry, and the flaps of wings.

_No way...it can't..._

She dived, but just as she got behind the wall, her leg was impaled with one of the spears, going straight through her armour and the spike appearing the other side of her leg. She collapsed to her front, crawling quickly behind cover as another volley came flying through, barely dodging the shots, her breathing erratic, but always panting, shallow.

"Fuck" She spoke, letting her sword and shield go in order to move slightly faster. She looked back, seeing the feather, amazed that she was still conscious at this point, never mind still moving. Four clear hits from the beast. That levelled most fully grown men. She grabbed her sword as the beast made a passover, trying to get a good bead on her to finish things, looking back as she tried to break the feather again, slamming through it and letting it drop to the ground, moving away from it so as not to shred her leg. She sat up quickly, grabbing the bloodied end and yanking it through, crying out in pain as she did so, the pain erupting like nothing she had never felt before. Years of fighting and now she had found the worse pain ever. Facing the most dangerous creature they had ever known.

"This is just getting started" She spoke, slowly getting herself back up, grabbing her sword and shield, standing up slowly and unsteadily, her balance gone almost entirely, using her sword at times to keep standing. She grabbed a new clip once more, loading it into the rifle, then doing the same with the revolver, shakily loading the bullets, nearly missing the chamber at times, before flicking the chamber back in. This was getting too close to the wire...way too close for her liking. Kaine would be good right about now, the rifle blasting away what remains in it's skull. Dark's Dust Arrows...heavenly...

She took a breath, calming herself down as she realised what she was saying. She was going to make it through this alone, and live to tell the tale. She gave a confident smile, looking outside, seeing the beast flying around, the blood now not flowing from it's leg. _OK, so Nevermore can heal their wounds...the bleeding ones anyway_ She noted, nodding to herself. _Guess that means I don't have much time to finish the job _She fired one spare shot at it, hoping to draw it's attention once more, starting to sprint towards the towers, the beast turning towards her once more, now throwing out another set of feathers. She didn't waste any time, getting into the southern tower with a certain level of disgrace, more collapsing into the tower as the feathers hit once more, shaking her head as she got back up, seeing the stairs. She started making the walk, checking the ammo she had left over.

And that's when she found out the horrible news.

She couldn't find any spare clips for the rifle. And only one extra set of bullets for the revolver...typical...if this set didn't take it down, that was it. She just hoped everything was about to work out. And as she got to the top of the stairs, the beast made another pass, the walls shaking, the loud cry from the Nevermore echoing from the walls. But still...she was there. And the walkway was just there, and as she stepped out slowly onto the walkway, she had to swallow back her fear, holding her shield up, aiming the rifle at the beast, watching it flying around to try and get ready for another pass. The fort in front of her, the plains behind her, the beast at the same level as her. And, with her breath laboured, her blood flowing out of her, her left eye covered with blood, her strength fading as her right leg, right arm and left foot were punctured by feathers, her side sliced.

But right now, she couldn't help but be more focused then ever. The beast coming in for another run, Silven smiling.

_Right where I wanted you_

She swung the revolver out as the beast came to her level, firing the chamber into the beasts left wing, each one hitting home, freezing upon impact. She moved quickly, flicking out the chamber and reloading, firing the last rounds into the other wing, leaving only one bullet left in the chamber, the beast's wings coming to a stop, it's mouth open as it came to eat her. She stood there, lowering her arm as it came closer, stepping backwards slightly, getting to the edge before pausing.

"Please...whatever happens...let this work..." She said to herself, the beast getting as close as Silven would wait, with less then a second to act. She leaned back, falling over the edge with her eyes closed, hearing the crash of the beast into the stone, and the gnashing of teeth as it barely missed her. She crashed to the ground, crying out in pain once more as the steel of her equipment crashed against her wounds, but she did the job right: the creature bringing down the towers, struggling to get back into the air, the swordswoman moving quickly to escape the avalanche of rubble, crawling away from the area, barely able to escape the more sizeable chunks in time. But the Nevermore slammed into the ground, it's wings frozen solid, crying out as it tried to get back up, unable to do so.

That was it. She'd done what she had planned. The Ice keeping it's wings from being able to move due to sheer weight, not to mention the damage of the stone impact. Silven stood up uneasily, stumbling her way over to the creature's head, hearing it squawking out loudly as she stood by the side of it's face lacking the mask. It's eye scanned around quickly in it's socket, panicking, looking for help in order to keep alive. But as Silven prepared the final round in the revolver, aiming it slowly and purposefully at the exposed cells, swallowing. It seemed to calm down as she stood there, knowing what was about to happen.

**BANG**

The creature's exposed flesh froze, the creature still crying out in pain, even though it knew the end was near. Silven turned, holding up the sword and aiming the rifle at the ice, firing every single shot that was left in the mag, blasting a solid hole through the ice into the skull...and when she ran out of ammo, she put all she had into a swift, severe stab, the creature falling limb as it finally lost it's life, the Nevermore, the proud creature, finally dead.

She pulled her sword out, the brain matter and blood partly flowing off, but she didn't care, merely walking over to the creature's wing, finding a spot that was unblemished, unarmed and unfrozen, putting her shield and sword down nearby, letting her legs collapse from beneath her to sit on it. She was thankful the legends were true. Nevermore feathers when they weren't thrown off of it were as soft as a kitten, and as she held her hand over the wound on her side, she looked up at the night sky, smiling.

"I did it" She spoke, taking a breath as she tried to stay awake.

"I killed a Nevermore..."

_The Miracle of the Tiavelis is what we know her from. The first woman to slay a Nevermore and indeed the first we know of to be able to use their semblance._

_History remembers her for this, Saint Silven the winged avenger._

_But this is not where the tale ends..._

* * *

THERE! 9 pages...GOD that felt painful. But yes, the solo kill of a Nevermore, albeit with a near death state for the slayer. Yes, it's more powerful then what RWBY has in standard practices, but...this is before them. This is a different age.


	6. Chapter 5

Yeah, I fell behind but still, This isn't that far away from being done anyway. Besides, so far the only thing that isn't matching canon is Ozpin's room. It's a good thing I'm dealing in the past :D

But anyway, less talk more type. ONWARDS!

* * *

There probably wasn't anyone in this world that didn't know the tale up to this point. Everyone had heard of her sacrifice, how she lived, how her powers awoke and led to the world working to activate it's own powers. Indeed, if not for this, Hunters and Huntresses today would stand no chance, with the Grimm evolving, the enemy becoming more and more powerful with each passing generation.

And as he paused, taking another drink of his tea, pressing a button on his scroll and pausing the recording, taking a small breath. He stood up once more, taking a few steps to stretch off, walking on his walking stick. Dawn was starting to break, the scarlet rays blazing against a grey sky.

"That is where the official tale ends" He explained, taking a small sip of his drink, thankful that the heat was flowing through him. _One day I will close this window...If I'm not careful I'll catch my death doing something like this._ He turned around, the cogs above him still ticking away. The monotony of them an almost calming reminder that he was still awake, still here and still working.

_**Beep beep beep!**_

He turned back to his scroll, seeing the black chat box turning up once more, the blinking line as someone was getting ready to send him a message, the audio on his end still active as he got ready to reply.

_So she died then...That's where all of this ends..._

He smiled, walking back over and taking his seat. Oh if only they knew.

"Quite the Contrary" He started, then pushing up his glasses. "You should know me by now" The blinking line once more. "I'm not one to make pointless conversation..."

_That's very true._

He nodded, taking a small breath.

_As long as I've known you, you've only led me astray once_

He knew what they were on about. It was an unspoken knowledge between the pair. He didn't know how much he needed to apologise for that.

_Though I believe it had to be under the circumstances._

He took it upon himself to make this one private, this time pressing a keyboard icon on the screen, the letters showing up for him, pressing them as he needed to.

_If not for that...we wouldn't know what we do now_

He sent the message, taking another drink before typing out another message.

_The sacrifices we've made have led us to this point_

It was about this point where he started to regret Schnee's System having such a small character count.

_But you most of all...I can't apologise enough._

There was a pause in the conversation as the recipient took it in, and as they took it all in. He could almost tell that the other side were fighting back tears. Grimm were never kind, but what they had faced...he couldn't comprehend it.

…_..I don't blame you._

Ozpin raised a staunch eyebrow, confused over what he had just read.

_We all knew the risks. What matters now is-_

-that we know what cards we have to play.

Ozpin nodded, leaning back once more as he thought about what was going on, and how he would handle this. Another box popped up, blinking with another text box.

_Just Left Atlas. Will be there in few hours._

"This should be interesting then..." He took another sip, closing this new box before looking back to his old one. "What about you, my friend? How long until you arrive?" A few more blinks of the indicator, a few more precious ticks of the clock as second passed away. Much as he respected the man on the other end of the screen, He knew that every second counted.

_Five minutes. In Beacon, just travelling-_

Five minutes? He checked the time on the clock before making any note of a reply. It was at least 6am...Had they been travelling to Beacon all this time? And then, last he knew they were walking.

_Sorry if Grouchy, been a long damn night._

"It's OK, my friend. I hadn't expected you to do so much to get here"

_Yeah well...not all of us have our wings._

"The price of our fight...I'm sorry"

_My wings were clipped before then._

"Still...you might have had a chance to recover them if not for me. We might have been able to find a way for you to recover them"

_We already know that wasn't likely-_

_-look, I'm not about to put up with you being-_

_-a wreck just because of me. You need to focus-_

_-now more then ever. We're on a time limit here-_

That was true. He mentally chided himself for forgetting that, taking a small breather and another sip before relaxing, getting back into his stride.

_Now...you said there was more to this story._

He nodded, closing up the book.

"There is...there is a lot more that most people don't know" He pressed record once more, taking a small breath. "For what remains, we must go outside of what is written...of Saint Silven at the very least. For the rest, we go to what we know of Lady Kaine" Ozpin took it as a sign that they were listening quite intently when the words _Go on _Appeared on the screen.

"Remember my earlier question...how does one define a life? Is it the one person or the many they touch? Is it the adventures they have? This tale links in to what we fight for today...and as things develop, history will repeat if we allow it to. However, we know of Kaine for the wrong reasons. Whilst we know Kaine now from the Legacy of Saint Silven, she was notably in the tales from Atlas. The warriors of the Green Rose Clan. However, this is a misconception, as Lady Kaine has never been to Atlas from what we know"

"Her tale, and that of Lady Silven are so intrinsically linked, that people fail to separate the pair. Lady Kaine's tale is Lady Silven's...and thus to understand what occurred with Miss Eradora, we must understand what remains of her, transferring the major players from Kaine's story to hers"

_Resume Recording_

* * *

Drip...drip...drip...

The feel of water slowly but surely dropping onto her forehead was starting to wake her up, Silven's eyes slowly but surely opening, the woman groaning as she moved a hand to hold her head, feeling a massive pain flaring up. A stroke of lightning barely made her react as she now opened her eyes fully, noting the lack of armour on her person, now down to just her leathers. She moved her hand away, looking at the grey sky above her, rain pouring down around her, a tree being her only shelter from it. A leaf hanging above her being the source of the rain drops coming down on her.

She sat up, looking around slightly as she tried to get an idea of where she was. It was out of the fort site, she knew that much given the lack of Rubble and Nevermore corpse. The trees were still as plentiful as they always had been, and behind her was a cave leading into the earth. She took a small breath, looking over herself, noting the linen on and under her.

Along with the body of a certain woman...Ember.

"So...you've finally awoken" She spoke, taking her arms away from Silven's covered chest, sitting up quickly. "Nice to know that you're not going to die as a pincushion, Silven my dear"

"Ember? H-how did -" She started, getting a finger placed on her lips and shushed, Ember looking her straight in the eye.

"Don't talk...and don't ask" More of the cover slid down, revealing more of Ember's skin, Silven's eyes opening wide. "And don't scream"

"KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

The conversation quickly moved into said cave, Ember now fully dressed, standing guard at the entry as Silven took a few bites into her rations, what was left of them anyway. Someone had left 'test bites' in some of the more...delicious meals available to her. Still, she managed to get a good meal at least. Ember had put on a simple set of clothes, more or less a red shirt and shorts with a good pair of boots.

"So...I have to ask" As she finished eating, looking over herself. Ember turned towards her, still sat facing away. "I'm...pretty sure I got impaled with a few Feathers here and there" She looked over where she had taken the hits, noting...the majority of her wounds had healed up, a few of them had gone altogether, but the one on her leg and the wound on her chest. The holes were still in her clothing, but where she was supposed to have been injured in a lot of places, there was nothing...aside from the odd speck of blood. "How...how am I still here?" Ember chuckled slightly, stepping towards the woman, a hand on her side.

"Sylvia, this is going to take a while to explain" Ember began, brushing her hair back. Silven put her water skin down, looking over at her.

"We have a while do we not..." She looked rather harshly at the woman, getting a sigh in response as she walked over, cracking her shoulder before sitting down.

"All right...remember how I said I was working nearby?" She started, breathing before carrying on, Silven nodding. "I was hunting down a Nevermore...the same one you guys faced down and...well, you took down...somehow...I'm still trying to figure out how...though I suspect a mix of luck and skill"

_More like pure skill _Silven thought, a smug smile on her face.

"I would say more luck then skill, however" Silven's smile disappeared as soon as that was said, Ember leaning back against the wall of the cave as the rain outside hammered down, almost drowning whatever life would be left outside. "However, what matters is you beat it...I got there in time to find you collapsed on the wing, bleeding to death, so many holes in you I didn't know whether to try and help you recover or cut you up and call you cheese. And that's without looking over your armour. I don't even know if that thing is salvageable" She pointed over to the back of the Cave, Silven turning and seeing the suit in a corner, organised one next to another so each was in clear sight. And then each had something missing, be it a chunk from the main armour plates to gouges in the steel itself, to just utterly ruined sections. She sighed, scratching her head.

"That armours been with me for years..." She spoke, looking back to Ember. "What of my Sword, and my shield?"

"Your shield...it's still in a fixable condition, though you'll need to find an expert to get it done" She explained, grabbing it from under a pile of her own gear. "As for your sword, it's still as good as ever, and here it is" She pulled it out, throwing the pair over to the warrior, Silven catching them in mid-air, the shield jammed open.

"Least it works...not even going to try the revolver as knowing my luck I'll blow my arm off"

"Like I said...it's fixable...Now where was I..."

"I was heavily injured..."

"Right, there we are...anyway, I had to take a risk to help you stay alive...There's a legend where the Venom from a Deathstalker had regenerative qualities..." She raised an eyebrow at this point, unsure if Ember were sane at the moment.

"Deathstalkers don't have venom" Ember chuckled, patting Silven on the back.

"Not that you know of. Given the size of that barb it's not surprising that the venom is a rarely known thing. However, it's surprisingly weak...well, as poisons go anyway. But the way it's developed has made it so that, if you survive it, it's...pretty much a miracle cure. You're a living example of it...however, it shouldn't heal you this much...Cauterise and restore blood and bodily functions, maybe, but fix you up from where you were...it's either a lot more potent then we give it credit, or...you're one lucky girl" Silven chuckled, scratching the back of her head as she thought about it. "No...seriously...you are one...forgive my language here...fucking lucky woman. Whatever it is that's helping you survive the hell that you've been through, I want some of it...you almost seem to have a glow about you" Silven paused, trying to think it over.

"Well...killing a Nevermore is going to make you more confident. But I doubt that's helped me take harm like I have"

She crossed her arms, thinking it over, then almost collapsing as she sat. Only Ember rushing forward to hold her up prevented her from hitting the ground, her arms wrapped around the green haired woman's chest. Though sadly, this only made the issue reverse, Silven now collapsing into Ember, and the pair then collapsing to the ground. The pair both groaned at the same time, the pair's lips barely missing each other as Silven's hit the dirt, the woman rolling off with a groan once more as the pain of her still healing wounds took hold, holding her side.

"Yeah...that hurts...a lot" She moaned, straining to sit up once more. Ember chuckled slightly, rolling over and looking at the other woman.

"There is...one other thing that I probably should have mentioned...not that it's important or anything. But it's something that I'm...pretty sure you didn't need to hear...wellll...not until now anyway" Silven looked at the woman as she started sitting up, raising an eyebrow. "I'm pretty sure that you don't want to know it"

"Ember...please don't start this again. Just tell me" Ember sighed, throwing a fireball towards some sticks in the corner.

"I found you...about a week ago" Silven looked at her, and the only sounds that could be heard from the area were the rain pouring outside and the fire burning in the corner.

And then, her jaw dropped, and a sound that sounded a lot like a very long and drawn out 'whaaaaa'. Ember nodded, holding her hand up as she tried to think of a way to calm her down, then lowering it, holding her hand over her mouth.

"Yeah, that's why I didn't tell you, Sylvia" She spoke, almost matter of factly. "On the bright side, we're heading back to the camp...now that you're up we'll get there in about two days, give or take depending on your wounds...two days of catching up..." Silven wasn't entirely sure if she liked the small glint that had appeared in her eyes at this point, sighing, but then smiling.

"At the very least...we do need a damn good catch up" and as Ember started making grabbing motions with her hands, Silven was pretty sure that she would need her chest plate on more often. Much as she knew Ember cared for her...she'd rather keep her dignity.

* * *

_Hold on a moment..._

Ozpin quickly pressed the pause button once more, standing up and walking over to his book case to grab the necessary materials to carry on the tale. Reciting from memory was one thing, but going from an actual source was another. Easier on the memory.

_You're telling me Ember w-_

"It's possible" He spoke before his comrade even finished, the text still going up to finishing the word was. "Of course, there's no certainty that she ever was, however, there has been evidence that, despite never having a partner, Lady Silven was supposed to have left her mark" He let this hang for a time, hoping he didn't have to explain it. The blinking bar seemed to tell him he'd have to, but then, he was willing to bet he wouldn't. After all, this was an expert.

_I suppose I did ask to hear it all._

He chuckled, taking another mouthful. "That you did"

_But...that raises a question.-_

_-One that I never thought I'd ask_

"Go on..."

_If Silven was, well, that way inclined.-_

_-How did her legacy pass on?_

"You have a habit of asking the right questions..." He smiled, opening the book, dust flying everywhere.

_Part of the job nowadays._

"But, legacy's don't just pass on through bloodlines. We have out Genes for our children to inherit, our Memes for others to understand and follow. Our scenes for people to learn from. Just because our history is written in blood doesn't mean our future will always be"

_That's true...though history has a-_

_-habit of repeating, as you've be-_

_-en keen to reiterate to me._

Ozpin chuckled, shaking his head at the screen. "Remind me to inform Schnee to improve the scrolls communications systems. A higher character count would be nice"

_? Can we keep on topic here?_

_Much as we rarely speak these days-_

_-business has to come first until th-_

_-e job is done. We don't know ho-_

_-w long I may have left._

"Of course...my apologies, my friend"

_We can catch up in the downtime._

_There's a gap between this and my-_

_-next big job. Enough to check-_

_-my condition. Let alone my wings._

"We may be in luck yet...but regardless, we must press on" He pressed the button once more, taking a small breath. "People often relate the body to our last layer of armour...our last defence against the creatures that assail this world... or as a weapon in itself that gives us strength to hold our ground. Call it what you will. There are not many things that can be described as more important to a person then their body...perhaps the only pair are your heart and your spirit...as long as you walk your own path, you may never lose your heart and spirit in a path you truly believe in"

* * *

The second night was perhaps the hardest for the warrior. Her body may have nearly mended, but her spirit...she missed her comrades dearly, and the fact that they were now, apparently 2 days away, having gotten delayed due to the weather, not to mention her leg wound was still aching, slowing her down even more. The thing that stood out over these past days of travel, and this was something that was making her worried, was the distinct lack of something.

Grimm...even in weather this bad, Grimm would go hunt, they'd reside back in their caves, much like the one Kaine and Silven had taken for the evening, the pair drying out soggy clothing. Ember having started a small fire once more, sitting down next to it, opposite Silven in just her undergarments, stretching off here and there. Silven on the other hand was partially better off, though not much better, trying to wring her hair out. Just about everyone apart from the fish came out as the water splashed onto the ground. She took out the knot of her pony tail, resetting it into a pair of ponytails at the back of her head, one above the other.

"You should keep your hair like that" Ember commented, Silven looking over at her, raising an eyebrow as Ember almost hunched over, though covering her chest. "Suits you Sylvia" She chuckled, Silven blushing slightly.

"Ember...don't start that again" She replied, taking a small breath before carrying on. "My apologies for holding you back during this journey"

"Oh, there's no worries from me. If anything it's helping me out. Gives me time to relax from my last job instead of going straight back out" She lent back against the cave walls, putting her hands behind her head. "Don't worry about the Grimm...I have a way with magick"

"You're holding them back?" Ember shook her head, trying to think of the best way to explain it.

"It's more...I'm scaring them off. Seems they can sense my powers...not entirely sure how but still it's the only real explanation. Though saying that they're further away then before now I've got you"

"Strength in numbers. Besides, you've gotten a heck of a lot more powerful in recent days" Ember smiled, looking back outside. "Take it you've slackened your guard due to it"

"I haven't...well, not in whole. I'm still as able and as ready as I always was but...Grimm just don't seem to come...well, unless I'm hunting them down, then they just seem to come out of the woodwork all the time" She spun her hand, trying to think of the best way to put it. "I'm thinking these Grimm have a sort of sixth sense for power...or maybe I'm just giving off some vibe that they don't want to deal with. Whatever the case..." She lifted her hand up, holding a flame in it, then throwing it up, starting to juggle a trio of them. "Seems Grimm have common sense...maybe we both have the same vibe now"

It didn't make sense...Silven sat there trying to figure it all out. One minute it was just a normal day, next she had wings, and now, nine days after said wings had happened, she was being told there was something...different about her. Something that couldn't have a finger put on it. It got even weirder given that she had healed from wounds that...well, Siegfried was known for coming back from the brink, even he couldn't have come back from the point she was at.

Just...what the hell had happened? She raised her uncovered hands, looking them over, blinking, disbelief over everything.

_I should be Dead...I should...I should be either a body bled out on the...no...I should be a small mark in the ground...a broken corpse eaten by a beast._

"Stop fretting, Sylvia" Ember told her, now running a small line of flames between her fingers. "Regret what's happened, not what could have been. Once you start thinking of all that might have happened...well, you end up regretting everything and it slowly but surely drags you down into the depths" Silven raised an eyebrow, taking in what she had just been told but not quite getting it. "Lighten up, Sylvia m' dear. You're still here, alive and mostly well. Don't let it go to waste"

"I know...I know..." She stood up, walking to the cave entryway and standing just beyond reach of the rain, leaning against the side. "I...I do have to worry though..."

"About the rest of your team?"

"Dark and Falcon can handle themselves...It's Kaine that worries me" Ember chuckled, relaxing at the back of the place.

"Relax...she's a lot better then you give her credit for" Silven sighed, crossing her arms once more.

"I know...I know...she'd make her family proud of her at the very least"

"Either that or a proud Eradoran adoptee" Silven sighed once more, taking a seat near the entrance and nodding a few times. "Maybe you could help me out later in the week...I've got a plan that going to change the world forever"

"I'll pass, Ember...right now, I have a lot to do...and Kaine and myself need a home"

_Aura was a frightening thing to try and comprehend back then, much like technology._

_The ability to heal from wounds, to resist pain, to push yourself beyond the limits of normal people._

_And then...the very basics of it were only open to the warriors back then..._

_but Semblance and speed, those are a tale for another time..._


End file.
